A hydroxyphenyloxadiazole lithium complex as a highly efficient blue emitter and interface material in organic light-emitting diodes

We synthesized a hydroxyphenyloxadiazole lithium complex (LiOXD) as a blue light-emitting and electron injection/transport material to be used in double-layer organic electroluminescent devices. Devices with the concise configuration of ITO/TPD/LiOXD/Al showed bright blue EL emission centered at 468 nm with a maximum luminance of 2900 cd m(-2). A current efficiency of 3.9 cd A(-1) and power efficiency of 1.1 lm W-1 were obtained. LiOXD was also examined as an interface material. The efficiency of an ITO/NPB/Alq(3)/Al device increased considerably when LiOXD was inserted between Alq(3) and aluminium. The improvement of the device characteristics with LiOXD approached that observed with the dielectric LiF salt.

Red light-emitting diodes based on rare earth complex Eu (TTA)(4)C5H5NC16H33

A thin film electroluminescence cell with the structure of ITO/PPV/PVK:Eu(TTA)(4)C5H5NC16H33:PBD/Alq(3)/Al has been fabricated. Red emission with a very sharp spectral band at 614nm was observed and a maximum luminance of 20cd . m(-2) at 36V was obtained from the spin-coated device. The full width at half maximum of luminescent spectrum is less than 10nm.

Novel bis(8-hydroxyquinoline)phenolato-aluminum complexes for organic light-emitting diodes

A novel series of emitting aluminum complexes containing two 8-hydroxyquinoline ligands (q) and a phenolato ligand (p) were synthesized and characterized. Double layer organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) were fabricated using these complexes as luminescent layers, and strong electroluminescence (EL) was observed. It was found that their emitting wavelengths were mainly determined by the first ligands (q). Cyclic voltammograms revealed a partially irreversible n-doping process and indicated that these complexes show excellent electron-transporting ability.

Oxadiazole-containing material with intense blue phosphorescence emission for organic light-emitting diodes

2-(2-hydroxyphenyl)-5-phenyl-1, 3, 4-oxadiazole (HOXD), characteristic of excited state intramolecular proton-transfer (ESIPT), was synthesized and found to emit strong blue phosphorescence in the solid state at room temperature and at low temperature (77 K). The photoluminescent spectrum measurement in solution showed that there are two kinds of emission: fluorescence originated from the singlet state and phosphorescence derived from the triplet state in HOXD formed by ESIPT. For the photoluminescent spectrum in the solid state, only phosphorescence emission with the lifetime of 66 mus was observed. Multiple-layer light-emitting diodes with the configuration of ITO/NPB/HOXD/BCP/Alq(3)/Mg:Ag were fabricated using HOXD as emitter and the maximum brightness of 656 cd/m(2) and the luminous efficiency of 0.14 lm/W was obtained.

Blue organic light-emitting devices with an oxadiazole-containing emitting layer exhibiting excited state intramolecular proton transfer

We report a blue organic light-emitting device having an emissive layer of 2-(2-hydroxyphenyl)-5-phenyl-1,3,4-oxadiazole (HOXD), that exhibits excited state intramolecular proton transfer (ESIPT). The device had a luminance efficiency of 0.8 cd/A and a maximum brightness of 870 cd/m(2). Electroluminescence spectra revealed a dominating peak at 450 nm and two additional peaks at 480 and 515 nm with a full width at half maximum of 50 nm. Our studies indicate that some EL may originate from the triplet excitation state of the enol form of HOXD.

New PPV oligomers containing 8-substituted quinoline for light-emitting diodes

Two new poly(phenylenevinylene) (PPV) oligomers, 2,2'-(1,4-phenylenedivinylene)bis-8-acetoxy quinolines were synthesized via a Knoevenagel condensation reaction. The single-crystal X-ray diffraction study shows that there are intermolecular pi...pi interactions in the solid state of 2,2'(1,4-phenylenedivinylene)bis-8-acetoxyquinoline. Electroluminescent properties using these compounds as emitters have been investigated.

Improved efficiency by a graded emissive region in organic light-emitting diodes

Electrical and optical properties of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) with a stepwise graded bipolar transport emissive layer for a better control of charge transport and recombination are presented. The graded bipolar transport layer was formed by co-evaporating a hole-transporting material N,N-'-diphenyl-N,N-'-bis(1,1(')-biphenyl)-4,4(')-diamine (NPB) and an electron-transporting/emissive material tris-(8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminum (Alq(3)) in steps, where each step has a different concentration ratio of NPB to Alq(3). Compared to a conventional heterojunction OLED, electroluminescence efficiency was enhanced by a factor of more than 1.5, whereas the turn-on voltage remained unchanged in the graded structure.

Synthesis of novel nitrogen- and sulfur-containing conjugated polymers used as hole-transporting materials for organic light-emitting diodes

Two series of highly soluble novel nitrogen- and sulfur-containing conjugated polymers were synthesized via an acid-induced self-polycondensation of functional monomers with methyl sulfinyl and aromatic groups. The well-defined structures of synthesized polymers were confirmed by their NMR and IR spectra. The highest occupied molecular orbital energy values for these materials, estimated by cyclic voltammetry, showed a broad range of values from about 5.0 to 5.2 eV used as hole-transport layers (HTL) in two-layer light-emitting diodes ITO/HTL/Alq(3)/Mg:Ag [ITO = indium tin oxide, and Alq(3) = tris(8-quinolinato) aluminum]. The typical turn-on voltage of these diodes was about 4-5 V. The maximum brightness of the device was about 3440 cd/m(2) at 20 V. The maximum efficiency was estimated to be 0.15 1m/W at 10 V.

Improvement of luminescence efficiency by electrical annealing in single-layer organic light-emitting diodes based on a conjugated dendrimer

In this paper, we study the effects of electrical annealing at different voltages on the performance of organic light-emitting diodes. The light-emitting diodes studied here are single-layer devices based on a conjugated dendrimer doped with 2-(4-biphenylyl)-5-(4-tert-butylphenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole as the emissive layer. We find that these devices can be annealed electrically by applying a voltage. This process reduces the turn-on voltage and enhances the brightness and efficiency. We obtained an external electroluminescence quantum efficiency of 0.07% photon/electron and a brightness of 2900 cd m(-2) after 12.4 V electrical annealing, which are about 6 times and 9 times higher than un-annealing devices, respectively. The improved luminance and efficiency are attributed to the presence of a space charge field near the electrodes caused by charging of traps.

Novel blue light-emitting PPV-based copolymer containing triazole and carbazole units

A novel alternating conjugated copolymer containing triazole and carbazole units was synthesized by the Wittig reaction. The resulting bipolar conjugated polymer emits a pure light with good thermal stability, which is a promising candidate for polymer light emitting display.

Liquid crystalline and light emitting polyacetylenes: Synthesis and properties of biphenyl-containing poly(1-alkynes) with different functional bridges and spacer lengths

Biphenyl- (Biph-) containing 1-alkynes (3 and 4) and their polymers (1 and 2) with varying bridge groups and spacer lengths were synthesized and the effects of the structural variation on their properties, especially their mesomorphism and photoluminescence behaviors, were studied. The acetylene monomers 3(3) [HCdropC(CH2)(3)O-Biph-OCO(CH2)(10)CH3] and 4(m) [HCdropC(CH2)(m)OCO-Biph-OCO(CH2)(10)-CH3, m = 3, 4] were prepared by sequential etherization and esterification reactions of 1-alkynes. While 3(3) exhibits enantiotropic crystal E and SmB mesophases, its structural cousin 4(3) displays only a monotropic SmB phase. Enantiotropic SmA and SmB mesophases are, however, developed when the spacer length is increased to 4. Polymerizations of the monomers are effected by Mo-, W-, Rh-, and Fe-based catalysts, with the WCl6-Ph4Sn catalyst giving the best results (isolation yield up to 85% and M-w up to 59000). The polymers were characterized by IR, UV, NMR, TGA, DSC, POM, XRD, and PL analyses. Compared to 1(3), 2(3) shows a red-shifted absorption, a higher T-i, and a better packed interdigitated bilayer SmA(d) structure, while the mesophase of 2(4) involves monolayer-packing arrangements of the mesogens. Upon photoexcitation, 1(3) emits almost no light but 2(m) gives a strong ultraviolet emission (lambda(max) similar to 350 nm), whose intensity increases with the spacer length.

Synthesis and properties of alternating copolymers containing PPV and hole-transporting units for light-emitting devices

A series of alternating copolymers containing triphenylamine (TPA) moieties and oligomeric PPV segments in the main chain have been synthesized by Wittig condensation. The resulting polymers exhibit good thermal stability with decomposition temperatures (Tds) above 305 degreesC under nitrogen at 10 degreesC/min, and high glass transition temperatures (Tgs). They show intense photoluminescence in solution and film. The single-layer electroluminescent device using TAA-PV1 as emissive layer emits green light at 522nm with a turn-on voltage of 6V and maximum brightness of about 200cd/m(2) at 20V.