Alternatives to silica aerogel panel and blanket composites are beginning to gain traction. Silica aerogel granule and powder products are becoming more pronounced as progressively more companies emerge. Meanwhile polymer aerogels are a different class of the material, which can have the potential to act as interesting alternatives to traditional plastic and composite products.

These past 12 months have seen numerous celebrity deaths, athlete drug scandals and the end of Brangelina however, it was also the year Tesla announced fully automated cars, Alexa became part of the family and Leicester City won the Premier League. As we plan ahead for 2017, IDTechEx analysts have taken a look back over the past 12 months and picked out the most impactful technology launches, acquisitions and products from 2016. Happy New Year from all at IDTechEx!

Watch our preview of the IDTechEx Show! coming up in Santa Clara on Nov. 16-17 (www.idtechex.com/usa).

IDTechEx Research has been closely following the ITO alternative market for the past five years. It forecasts that ITO alternative solutions will reach more than $250m by 2026. In this article, IDTechEx Research brings you an update on conductive ink-based metal mesh films.

Managing temperatures using appropriate electronics packaging materials is essential to ensure the reliability of high-power LED applications.

IDTechEx Research has been following and analysing the conductive inks and pastes market for many years. It finds that this $1.3bn* market is subject to major change with long-lasting consequences on the business models of many large incumbent suppliers.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are now making a steady but quiet comeback.

Advancements in electronics technology are enabling medical electronic equipment designed for faster diagnosis, improved patient quality of life, and new drug-based therapies.

Heat dissipation in electronics and optoelectronics is a major obstacle to further technology development. It limits further miniaturisation, power, performance and reliability.

This short video will focus on the expectations of printed electronics technologies in the automotive industry over the next decade.

$1.2 billion of electrically conductive adhesives (ECAs) are already selling each year, and they are becoming increasingly common to replace solders in a variety of functions, applications and industries.

IDTechEx Research projects that the graphene market will grow to $220m in 2026. This forecast is at the material level and does not count the value of graphene-enabled products. In many instances graphene is only an additive with low wt% values.

Last year IDTechEx Research asserted that the transparent conductive film industry had entered a period of intense consolidation. We have been proved right as the consolidation period is beginning to take its first round of high profile victims.

Whilst the majority of wearable technology products sold today still fit with the components-in-a-box design, 2015 has been a record year for investment in smart clothing and e-textile products.

Interfacing with machines undergoes a constant evolution, allowing for wider adoption of computing devices over time, as interaction becomes more "natural". According to IDTechEx Research, smartglasses are bringing about the next big step in this ever-changing space.

The graphene industry is at a critical juncture for many small to medium sized companies: it is time for them to generate revenues and pre-empt any pending cash flow issues. These companies cannot often afford to take the long view, which many research groups and government are rightly taking.

Europeans won the Nobel Prize for their work on graphene but they are not necessarily winning on the commercial front. In fact, it is the Chinese who might overtake them.

Graphene finds users in California (Our most exciting graphene conference so far).

Thought leaders IDTechEx were among the first to identify three new megatrends in the world of technology: Structural Electronics (SE); 3D Printed Electronics (3DPE); Energy Independent Electric Vehicles (EIVs).

Each year IDTechEx Research releases its up-to-date market report on graphene and related materials: Graphene and 2D Materials: Markets, Technologies and Opportunities 2015-2025.