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Nanotech Displays Could Transform Your World

Eric Bland, Discovery News

Photos

Heads Up

April 9, 2008 -- A new nanowire-based screen could create Minority Report-style newspapers or show you the menu of your favorite restaurant as you walk down the street.

"It could be used to project GPS navigation information on a car windshield. It would be like driving in a video game," said David Janes, a scientist at Purdue University and a study author.

Such "heads-up" displays are commonly found in fighter jets, where information about other aircraft overlays them in the pilot's field of view.

Current heads-up displays are usually projected from below the dashboard, reflecting off specially mirrored glass into the eyes of the beholder.

The new display, which uses organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) embedded in transparent nanowires, would be placed directly on a car windshield, or even on eyeglasses, to overlay information on real objects, such as off-ramps.

Coupled with a computer, the same material used in eyeglasses would allow a user to look at a restaurant while walking down the street and view its menu without stopping in.

Since the display is transparent and flexible, it could also be used to create e-paper or e-books capable of being continually updated with videos and images.

"Imagine seeing full-motion video on your USA Today," said Janes.

The researchers stress that the current device, which measures 2mm by 2mm, is proof of concept.