Transparency

In an effort to enhance the research abilities of biologists, Stanford University researchers have discovered that applying a popular food coloring to the skin of mice allowed them to see through to the rodents' internal organs and other structures.

Transparent OLED technology has come a long way since early prototypes more than a decade ago, but screens are still a pricey proposition. Korean researchers have developed a 100-inch NTS display for mass production at a tenth of the cost.

Lots of glass surfaces can brighten up a room, but it also lets in too much heat as well as neighbors’ prying eyes. A new metamaterial is not only more transparent to light, but adds privacy, cools the room inside, and automatically cleans itself.

Glass might soon have some competition from an unlikely rival – bamboo. Scientists in China have turned regular old bamboo into a transparent material that’s also resistant to fire and water, and suppresses smoke.

Lenovo has unveiled a ThinkBook concept that boasts a futuristic transparent display and combined touch keyboard/drawing pad. The concept is part of the company's new tech offerings announced at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona this week.

Back in mid-2014, LG unveiled its first experimental transparent OLED display panel. That measured just 18 diagonal inches, but now the company has revealed a 77-inch transparent OLED television that's almost completely wireless.

Today's internet- and cellular-connected cars require antennas more than ever, but working the devices into vehicles' bodies limits the design possibilities. LG is out to change that, with a windshield-integrated transparent antenna.

A large percentage of a building’s energy usage is consumed by heating and cooling, but a new dynamic shading system could help. Inspired by the skin of krill, the system uses cells of blooming pigment that can block light on demand.

Though LG Display's transparent OLED technology has mostly been presented in concept form, the panels have made it out into the real world. And the company is hoping to seed more potential use cases with a bunch of new prototypes headed for CES 2022.

Scientists at Sweden's KTH Royal Institute of Technology have produced a completely renewable version of see-through wood thanks to the addition of a fruit peel extract, which also happens to make it more translucent than previous versions.

Would transparent solar cells installed in greenhouse roofs deprive plants of vital sunlight? To find out, researchers at North Carolina State University grew lettuce under various wavelengths of light, and found that the plants did just fine.

Though transparent display panels have been available for a while now, real-world applications have been few and far between. LG Display has some ideas that could change that, and plans to show off some everyday usage examples at CES 2021.