Idaho Based Firm Creates the World’s First 3D Printed Paper-Thin LED

Idaho based startup Rohinni, has declared using a tweet that they have 3D printed an LED lighting which is thinner than OLED.

3D printing has already cleared the way for printable metals, food concepts, and has got us very close to printing human organs. However, one untouched domain was that of energy which too now seems to have finally been covered.

Rohinni, which is an Idaho based startup has recently declared via a tweet that it has printed what is the world’s first 3D printed “lighting-paper”. What this essentially means is that the paper which is printed is also the world’s thinnest light with a thickness that of a paper.

The goal, according to Rohinni, is to enable the leading lighting option for a multitude of applications. The name given to the product is but obvious- Lightpaper, the world’s thinnest LED lighting. They claim that given its nature of design, the paper can be applied on any flat surface.

The concept of creating the Lightpaper was by mixing micro LEDs with 3D printing ink and then print the mixture on a conductive layer. The tiny LED diodes are about the size of human blood cells.

Reportedly the LightPaper is much thinner than current lighting technology OLED, which has been used in flat-screen televisions and allowed TV screens thinner than a tenth of an inch to be manufactured. But it seems that the company is more interested in using LightPaper in the automotive industry in making a new breed of tail-lights.

According to Rohinni’s website, the most obvious applications can be illuminating mobile phone covers which prevent them from getting lost often, installing creative lighting on the walls, and ofcourse in wearable wrist bands.

However, one disadvantage of the material used is the random dispersions of the diodes. Currently, the Light paper isn’t as bright over the whole surface, acknowledges Rohinni. Therefore challenge which they are working to overcome is to place the diodes more precisely to create a steady emission of light.

It has been reported that Lightpaper may see its dawn among consumers in mid-to-late 2015.