esearchers at Oregon State University and Hewlett Packard have reported their first example of an entirely new class of materials which could be used to make transparent transistors that are inexpensive, stable, and environmentally benign. This could lead to new industries and a broad range of new consumer products, The possibilities include electronic devices produced so cheaply they could almost be one-time "throw away" products, better large-area electronics such as flat panel screens, or flexible electronics that could be folded up for ease of transport. Findings about this new class of "thin-film" materials are called amorphous heavy-metal cation multicomponent oxides.

This is a significant breakthrough in the emerging field of transparent electronics, experts say. The new transistors are not only transparent, but they work extremely well and could have other advantages that will help them transcend carbon-based transistor materials, such as organics and polymers, that have been the focus of hundreds of millions of dollars of research around the world. Compared to organic or polymer transistor materials, these new inorganic oxides have higher mobility, better chemical stability, ease of manufacture, and are physically more robust. Oxide-based transistors in many respects are already further along than organics or polymers are after many years of research, and this may blow some of them right out of the water.[/font][/size]