Wonder Ink

I will be the first person to admit that I am not a technology whiz. I am constantly bombarded by terms that fall in one ear and out the other. And being a naturally curious sort, I usually decide to do some investigation in order to enlighten my ignorance.

E-ink happens to be one of those definitions that I am somewhat hazy on. I have a general idea of what the word means, but until today, I didn't grasp the full implications of its properties. And after reading up on e-ink, I find that I still don't comprehend it completely...

Electronic ink is a proprietary material that is processed into a film for integration into electronic displays. Although revolutionary in concept, electronic ink is a straightforward fusion of chemistry, physics and electronics to create this new material. The principal components of electronic ink are millions of tiny microcapsules, about the diameter of a human hair. In one incarnation, each microcapsule contains positively charged white particles and negatively charged black particles suspended in a clear fluid. When a negative electric field is applied, the white particles move to the top of the microcapsule where they become visible to the user. This makes the surface appear white at that spot. At the same time, an opposite electric field pulls the black particles to the bottom of the microcapsules where they are hidden. By reversing this process, the black particles appear at the top of the capsule, which now makes the surface appear dark at that spot.

To form an E Ink electronic display, the ink is printed onto a sheet of plastic film that is laminated to a layer of circuitry. The circuitry forms a pattern of pixels that can then be controlled by a display driver. These microcapsules are suspended in a liquid "carrier medium" allowing them to be printed using existing screen printing processes onto virtually any surface, including glass, plastic, fabric and even paper. Ultimately electronic ink will permit most any surface to become a display, bringing information out of the confines of traditional devices and into the world around us.

E-ink in a nutshell. The implications of this wonder-ink are still beyond me. It has the potential to impact the world on multiple levels. Unhindered by ink's barriers, e-ink can revolutionize the ways that people display information. It is mind-blowing to consider. I also find it rather exciting. And very 'green'. If e-ink can be produced in such a wide range of surfaces, the need for paper forms of advertising would be greatly reduced.

I know one thing: my children are going to grow up in a vastly different world. At the rate that things are changing these days, I am certain that I will have a host of stories that I will be able relate to them. I can envision their surprise as I tell them about a clunky, rectangular plastic box that used to be inserted into an ancient device called a VCR in order to watch a movie. And how Pluto was considered a planet when I was a child. And I am sure that most of the technologies my children will take for granted are going to continue to make me marvel...I will think back on how far we have come. At this point and time, I do not think that physical, paper books will become distinct, though I do think that they are fading into the background as our digital technologies overshadow them.

source: www.eink.com/