Thermal Till Roll

This paper is coated with chemicals that react to turn black when heated. An example is the combination of a fluoran leuco dye and octadecylphosphonic acids. The surface of the paper is glossier than standard paper, and if you draw your fingernail across it, it turns black. This paper is designed to be used in thermal printers, which usually work by pushing heated pins against the paper surface. It is used in applications where colour and resolution are not important, such as for till receipts. The advantage for the vendor is that the tills don’t need to be replenished with ink like a normal printer, and hand held devices such as chip and pin units can be streamlined as no ink cartridge is required.