Tandem Organic Light-Emitting Diodes

• Published in: Advanced materials (Weinheim) 2016-12, Vol.28 (47), p.10381-10408
• Main Authors: Fung, Man-Keung, Li, Yan-Qing, Liao, Liang-Sheng
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Architecture; Connectors; Devices; Electric potential; interface studies; intermediate connectors; Materials selection; Optical design; optical outcoupling; Organic light emitting diodes; tandem organic light-emitting diodes
• ISSN: 0935-9648; 1521-4095
• DOI: 10.1002/adma.201601737

A tandem organic light‐emitting diode (OLED) is an organic optoelectronic device that has two or more electroluminescence (EL) units connected electrically in series with unique intermediate connectors within the device. Researchers have studied this new OLED architecture with growing interest and have found that the current efficiency of a tandem OLED containing N EL units (N > 1) should be N times that of a conventional OLED containing only a single EL unit. Therefore, this new architecture is potentially useful for constructing high‐efficiency, high‐luminance, and long‐lifetime OLED displays and organic solid‐state lighting sources. In a tandem OLED, the intermediate connector plays a crucial role in determining the effectiveness of the stacked EL units. The interfaces in the connector control the inner charge generation and charge injection into the adjacent EL units. Meanwhile, the transparency and the thickness of the connector affect the light output of the device. Therefore, the intermediate connector should be made to meet both the electrical and optical requirements for achieving optimal performance. Here, recent advances in the research of the tandem OLEDs is discussed, with the main focus on material selection and interface studies in the intermediate connectors, as well as the optical design of the tandem OLEDs. Recent advances of tandem organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs) including the material selection, interface engineering, and optical design of numerous intermediate connectors are reviewed. Their interfaces are crucial in determining the driving voltage, efficiencies, and lifetime. The optical transparency, microcavity, light out‐coupling, and voltage drop across the intermediate connectors have to be carefully considered for high‐performance tandem OLEDs.