Flexible displays that are up to four times brighter than phone screens unveiled in Singapore

A new generation of bendable screens delivers three to four times the brightness of a smartphone display

According to НВ — Техно: August 19, 22:57 - A team at the National University of Singapore, working with the IMRE and IHPC research institutes, has built a flexible electrochemiluminescent display with a luminance of 1,552 candelas per square meter. That makes it roughly three to four times brighter than a typical smartphone screen and sets a new record that is 3.2 times higher than the previous best.

Led by Associate Professor Tan Yu Jun, the study produced a device that runs at ±3.5 V and 90 Hz. A key innovation is the electrolyte: the usual ionic liquid was swapped for one with smaller, faster-moving negative ions, which dramatically improved stability. After 10 on-off cycles, the new system retained 82 times greater brightness than earlier versions, and its continuous operating time jumped from 29 minutes to two hours.

Where such flexible screens could be applied

The display architecture combines a textured electrode, a transparent electrode, and a thin silver mirror to boost performance. From this, the team created three prototypes:

• a medical patch that reads glucose levels in sweat;
• a seven-segment digital panel aimed at smart packaging and soft robotics;
• a solid-state unit designed to function underwater.

These bendable displays could end up in health-monitoring patches for glucose tracking or built into the sleeves of diving suits. The findings appear in Science Advances, marking a notable step forward for flexible display technology. Even so, organic LEDs still struggle with bending because of their layered construction, and LED capacitors require high voltage to operate.

With advancements like these, flexible electrochemiluminescent displays open up fresh possibilities across a wide range of applications.

Such displays could reshape industries from healthcare, where they enable unobtrusive patient monitoring, to robotics, where bendable screens allow for more interactive and adaptable devices. As the technology matures, consumers may see new products that combine flexibility with greater functionality and interactivity.