In the race to develop faster and more flexible wireless communication technologies, researchers are turning to an unexpected source: the same organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) found in smartphone screens and TVs.

A recent study by scientists at the University of St Andrews and the University of Cambridge, published in Advanced Photonics, shows that OLEDs can be engineered to transmit data at record-breaking speeds over surprisingly long distances—potentially transforming how we connect devices in the future.

The paper is titled “High-speed organic light-emitting diodes based on dinaphthylperylene achieving 4-Gbps communication.”