Flexible electronics are an enabler for a wide range of applications: from sensor patches, wearables, and smart packaging to robotics and human-machine interfaces. Until now, however, rigid or overly thick chip packages have made it difficult to integrate electronic functions into soft, curved, and flexible surfaces. In the CFP project, the Fraunhofer Institute for Electronic Microsystems and Solid State Technologies EMFT, the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM, and Yamagata University are therefore developing novel ultrathin and flexible chip foil packages.

On September 17, 2026, the project partners from Fraunhofer and Yamagata University (YU) met for their first technical exchange at the university’s Yonezawa campus.

As part of the project, the research partners aim to establish an end-to-end process chain—from sustainable printing materials and conductive inks to high-resolution conductive structures and the assembly of ultrathin chips, as well as encapsulation, sustainability analysis, and reliability testing. Fraunhofer EMFT’s roll-to-roll pilot line, which is unique in Europe, plays a key role in this effort. Fraunhofer IZM contributes more than 30 years of packaging expertise to the collaboration.

The Key to Industrial Manufacturing

The goal is to create chip foil packages less than 150 micrometers thick that reliably protect electronic functions even when repeatedly bent and exposed to moisture and temperature fluctuations. Scalable roll-to-roll manufacturing is intended to enable cost-effective, resource-efficient production in high volumes in the future. In this way, CFP is laying an important foundation for the industrial transfer of flexible electronic products.

The project is funded through Fraunhofer’s internal ICON program.