Novel Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) Technologies for Lighting and Display Applications

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Summary:

Researchers at The Ohio State University have developed a comprehensive portfolio of Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) technologies that include novel materials and device architectures as platforms for functional devices and for device manufacturing. These developments improve material stability over time while improving their performance such that the required voltage can be reduced and improved electroluminescence can be obtained with reduced power consumption. The bilayer device structure improves device quantum efficiency and brightness due to charge confinement and exciplex emission at the emitting polymer interface. Beyond advancements in the materials themselves, novel device architectures have been developed which are independent of the materials used. These advancements may be of significant value in simplifying manufacturing, thereby accelerating the displacement of LCD and plasma display technologies as well as the displacement of traditional incandescent and fluorescent lighting sources. The associated patent portfolio consists of 8 patent families with a total of 11 issued U.S. patents and 39 associated national stage filings (spanning all US cases). A listing of all issued U.S. patents can be found below.

Potential Applications:

  • Conformal, designable, and color-variable interior and exterior lighting for residential and commercial environments
  • Power and weight sensitive lighting and display applications (e.g. aircraft interior lighting, portable display backlighting)
  • Portable lighting devices such as flashlights
  • Light, ultra-thin, flexible displays with rich colors viewable from very wide angles
  • Body-wearable lighting and display applications
  • Nearly endless list of potential applications

Advantages:

  • More energy efficient lighting source compared to incandescent and fluorescent approaches
  • Color quality matches or surpasses conventional approaches in lighting and display applications
  • Estimated useful life is approximately 17-25 times longer than incandescent lighting and nearly twice as long as linear flourescent lighting (which is commonly used in modern LCD displays)
  • Polymeric material is conformal to a wide range of surface topologies and allows for ultra-thin, flexible displays
  • Low cost, materials-independent architectures have the potential to lower manufacturing costs
  • Adjustable color spectrum