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FREE PUBLIC LECTURE
How unexpected discoveries lead to new technologies.

Imagine watching videos on a paper-thin screen which can be rolled and put in your pocket, or projecting documents from a smart phone onto a flexible screen for easy reading. What if you could cover your lounge with a ‘wallpaper’ screen, powered by the light coming through the window?

These revolutionary technologies may not be confined to our imaginations for much longer. Sir Richard Friend, the 2012 Royal Society of New Zealand Distinguished Speaker, has pioneered the study that allows organic polymers, normally fashioned into plastic, to take on the electronic properties utilised in digital displays and solar cells.

In his talk, Richard Friend tells the story of the unplanned discoveries and breakthroughs that have led to the development of this extraordinary technology. His talk will take us from the basic research on plastic semiconductors and the realm of quantum mechanics through to his experiences of the commercialisation of his team’s ideas as part of the high-technology cluster which has built up around Cambridge University in the UK.