Paperless offices, paperless journals - and now paperless paper? Robert Hayes and B J Feenstra of Philips Research Eindhoven in the Netherlands have developed a new display device that acts like a sheet of paper, but can display images fast enough to be used for video. The idea is to use an applied voltage to control the degree to which a droplet of coloured oil mixed with water in a tiny pixel wets a white reflective surface. Contrast and reflectivity are far higher than can be obtained with liquid-crystal displays, so this looks like a technology that might really take off quickly.
Further reading
R A Hayes and B J Feenstra et al. 2003 Nature 425 383.