NEC has been working on ORB (Organic Radical Battery) which is an ultra thin battery and according to them can be used in circuits as thin as 0.3mm. The research on the ORB is now on for about 5 years and the batteries are expected to go into production by 2013.
According to NEC due to the thin nature of the ORB they can be put to use in credit cards and also bendable screens.
Yes this battery is also bendable thus bringing in a whole new breed of batteries and also helping out in development and powering of flexible displays and smartphone. NEC has said that a tiny 3cm square of the ORB is equivalent in delivering power of 3mAh and power a small screen display for around 2000 times on a single charge. It goes on to have a charge cycle which is equal to that of the currently used lithium-ion batteries. Now this is sweet.
Another key advantage of using the ORB is that it does not use any heavy chemical which are found in the current day batteries and thus are eco-friendly. They go on to use a reaction of salts in a polymer gel. Technically the ORB battery use molecular structures with an unpaired electron, often seen as a by-product of thermal and petrochemical reactions. In order to use them in a battery, the radical has to be stabilized.
We are now excited to see the ORB in action. Maybe Samsung will use it to power its Flexible Display for smartphones over even the Flexible and transparent tablet.