If you thought OLEDs were thin already, researchers at the Universal Display Corporation (whose factory we visited last year) have made a flexible display that's positively anorexic. The ultra-thin metal foil screen is less than 50 micrometers thin, which means it's even thinner than a sheet of A4 paper. The UDC folks also claimed that their new invention exceeds the industrial target of 1,000 hours and the lifetime of conventionally sealed glass packaged OLEDs.

The researchers said they were able to get better lifetime ratings after identifying a flexible, highly impermeable barrier layer, which helps keep the OLED screen from degrading because of oxygen and water. Flexible, amazingly thin and with a very decent lifespan? It sounds like we're two steps closer to handing out Young Lady's Illustrated Primers. [AVS Symposium via Slashgear]

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