Sharp to commercialize paper-thin liquid crystal gadget by 2007+

Sharp Corp. aims to commercialize electronic screen gadgets with a thickness of less than 1 centimeter on the strength of a “paper-thin liquid crystal display” by the end of 2007, Sharp officials said Friday.

Sharp is seeking to develop a liquid crystal display that can be bent as if it were a piece of paper, they said.

Liquid crystals do not emit light by themselves, so using them for a display requires putting a backlight mechanism behind the layer of liquid crystals.

But the necessity for such a backlight system has made it difficult to reduce the thickness of the liquid crystal display monitor device.

Sharp envisions creating a display that does not require a backlight system by improving the efficiency of light reflection associated with a liquid crystal monitor, they said.

The officials said that Sharp aims to commercialize the new technology in the form of liquid crystal display newspapers or screens for entertainment uses.