LONDON -- The market for printed electronics on flexible circuits will grow from to about $950 million in 2020, from $176 million in 2013, a 27% compound annual growth rate, a new study says. The primary end-markets for the boards include displays, sensing, lighting, energy generation and substrates.

Printed OLED displays for large TVs are likely to become the largest market, says Reportbuyer.com, which issued the study, while OLED lighting will remain a niche market for automotive and office lighting. Market demand for PV will remain very low compared to demand for rigid PV, below 1% of the global market, the firm added.

"We believe some applications will be more likely than other to be successful – for example, bendable applications will undergo tough stress during use and technological challenges will be hard to overcome. However, we believe over the next several years, the number of applications using printing processes for flexible electronics will grow," the firm said.

Based on its research, Reportbuyer thinks printing technologies will allow additional properties such as flexibility, and polytronic technologies are seen as a disruptive approach that could change the way printed and flexible electronic devices are manufactured. Polytronic refers to the embedding of ICs, thin films, micro batteries, and displays in a flexible substrate.

TAGS: Flex circuits, printed electronics, Reportbuyer, printing, polytronic, embedded components