Using carbon nanotubes and a new gel insulating material, researchers led by University of Minnesota chemical engineering professor Daniel Frisbie have made flexible electronics with the best performance yet for printed devices.

They report flexible circuits that switch at frequencies of two kilohertz (about 2,000 times per second) at a voltage of 2.5 volts, suggesting an important and realistic application of carbon nanotubes in electronics.

Integrated circuits printed from these materials could be used to drive simple displays and drug-delivery patches, and the flexible nanotube arrays might also be used as light emitters in telecommunications.