Light Emitting Devices

About

Synthesis of light emitting polymeric material and construction of a bilayer or multilayer electroluminescent device. The Need Conjugated polymers have proven to be viable materials for use in electronic displays ranging from digital cameras and cell phones to backlighting in dashboards. Polymer organic light emitting devices (P-OLEDs) have many advantages over traditional LEDs and LCD devices including elimination of complex filters and increased brightness and visibility while reducing power consumption. Potential commercial uses include consumer electronic products with larger displays (i.e. TVs, laptops), display monitors for facilities, and, on the largest end, advertising billboards.Advances in manufacturing techniques and materials could improve P-OLED performance and increase their utility in consumer goods and other commercial applications.P-OLEDs have experienced limited use as a display technology partially due to unstable polymeric compositions and color balancing issues with the conjugated polymer material. It is believed that the aggregation of polymeric chains causes a red-shifting of the emitted light which can produce undesired effects on displays. The low work function electrodes commonly used in P-OLED are susceptible to oxidation which can cause them to degrade rapidly even when not in use. The Market The global market for electroactive polymers is expected to increase from $2.1 billion in 2011 to $3.1 billion in 2016 with conductive polymers exhibiting the largest compounded annual growth rate of 16.4%. (BCC Research) P-OLEDs are expected to account for a growing share of the OLED global market with the anticipated production increase of large-format OLED TVs which is estimated to reach $5 billion in total sales by 2018. (BCC Research) Global market for OLED panels will increase from $5.2 billion in 2013 to $25.7 billion in 2018 with a compounded annual growth rate of 37.4%. (BCC Research) Global shipments of organic materials for OLED displays are expected to increase from nearly 26 metric tons in 2013 to over 103 metric tons in 2018. (BCC Research) The Technology Researchers at The Ohio State University, led by Dr. Arthur Epstein, developed novel methods for the synthesis and production of conjugated polymer materials to improve the performance in polymer based light-emitting devices. The conjugated polymer material is comprised of polymeric chains that are capable of being maintained in a sufficiently disaggregated state to prevent the red-shifting and the lowering of light emission efficiency of the electroluminescence. An additional synthesis technique incorporates an electron blocking polymer with a network electrode polymer to facilitate electron transport. This allows for similar levels of brightness within the P-OLEDs while using even less power for electroluminescence. An additional method developed that utilizes high work function electrodes could further reduce the required power for electroluminescence as well as improve the stability of the conjugated polymer. The high work function electrodes are more resistant to oxidation than their low work function counterparts which can lead to longer shelf life and operating time. Category Electronics, Optronics/Photonics, Engineering & Physical Sciences, Polymers, Materials, Gray (Light) Intellectual Property Issued Tech ID T1997-003