Harry Potter and the future of reading

The animated newspapers of "Harry Potter" fame may well be on-screen "magic", but researchers from the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney, Australia are working on the real thing. Their goal is to create a new generation of electronic paper, or "e-paper", which is as flexible and portable as today's printed version but also functions as an electronics display.

Ultimately, e-paper - like the "Daily Prophet" newspaper of the wizarding world - will load moving images and animated displays which can be constantly updated. What will look, feel and read like a conventional newspaper, for example, will perform like an online news service. Even breakfast cereal boxes should be capable of actually playing cartoons, rather than just displaying cartoon characters printed on cardboard.

"The new breed of electronic displays will be so flexible you can wrap them around things," says Associate Professor Francois Ladouceur, Head of UNSW's Photonics and Optical Communications Group. "The winning technology is not yet available, but there is a whole industry out there waiting for the breakthrough."

UNSW's research team is hoping their approach of using photonics and self-assembling polymer nano-technology will give them the edge. What that means is harnessing the properties of light and an understanding of the structure and behaviour of materials at a microscopic level, so that atoms and molecules can be manipulated to create moving visual displays.

The UNSW work has attracted the interest of Plastic Logic, the global leader in the emerging field of plastic electronics - electronics without silicon. In 2008, the Californian-based company opened the world's first commercial scale plastic electronics manufacturing facility, and is about to launch a lightweight, super thin, "e-reader" onto the world market. UNSW aims to produce even thinner, more flexible "e-paper".

Nanotechnology is big step in the evolution of scientific understanding, with profound implications for the global economy. It has the potential to create new manufacturing sectors through observing, characterising and manipulating the atomic and molecular structure of the materials on which modern technologies are based. It represents an extraordinary leap in the potential of minaturisation, not just in computing, but in everything from medicine to agriculture. Worldwide, the nanotechnology industry is growing at about 20% a year, led by the Asia region, with projected global revenues of US$2.84 trillion by 2015.

At UNSW a Bachelor of Science (Nanotechnology) is one of the wide range of specialised degrees on offer through the Faculty of Science. However, nanotechnology's far-reaching application means it is a field which is significantly impacting teaching and research in other faculties. In medicine, for example, researchers are investigating materials at the microscopic level to create targeted "carriers" which deliver anti-cancer drugs only to the cancerous cells in the body, reducing the debilitating side-effects of cancer treatment.

Progress is being made at UNSW in "nanoelectronics" for navigation systems for self-guiding tractors and robotic weeders and seeders, which would allow farmers to sit back and relax while the hard work is done. There are also projects under way such as the development of atomic-size computer devices, the building of molecules that can sense particular bacteria or viruses and the production of catalyst powders that can use sunlight to control pollutants.

A new state-of-the-art nanofabrication facility has just opened on campus at UNSW. Its clean rooms are equipped with advanced nanofabrication tools, such as nano-scale devices which can measure to within a few millionths of a millimeter. UNSW’s extensive Analytical Centre also supports the nanotechnology field, housing one of the most advanced collection of instrumentation in Australia for the study of the structure and composition of biological, chemical and physical materials.

Last year, enrolments of international students at UNSW grew significantly. UNSW was Australia's first international university and has been welcoming students from overseas since 1951. Today, there are over 11,000 international students studying in all faculties, alongside some 30,000 Australians. A dedicated support service, Student Development - International (SDI) helps students to adjust to living in Sydney and studying at UNSW by offering a wide range of educational, social and recreational activities.

For more information: www.international.unsw.edu.au