Hole Injection/Transport Materials Derived from Heck and Sol−Gel Chemistry for Application in Solution-Processed Organic Electronic Devices

• Published in: Journal of the American Chemical Society 2011-02, Vol.133 (5), p.1375-1382
• Main Authors: Lim, Younhee, Park, Young-Seo, Kang, Yerang, Jang, Do Young, Kim, Joo Hyun, Kim, Jang-Joo, Sellinger, Alan, Yoon, Do Y
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0002-7863; 1520-5126
• DOI: 10.1021/ja1061517

An organosilicate polymer, based on N,N′-diphenyl-N,N′-bis(4-((E)-2-(triethoxysilyl)vinyl)phenyl)biphenyl-4,4′-diamine (TEVS-TPD) with extended conjugation between the Si atom and the aromatic amine, was prepared under mild conditions via sequential Heck and sol−gel chemistry and used as an alternative to poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS), the most widely used planarizing hole injection/transport layer in solution-processed organic electronic devices. Spin-coating TEVS-TPD polymer solutions yield defect-free, uniform, thin films with excellent adhesion to the ITO electrode. Upon thermal cross-linking at 180 °C, the cross-linked polymer exhibits excellent solvent resistance and electrochemical stability. Solution-processed organic light emitting diode (OLED) devices using iridium-based triplet emitting layers and cross-linked TEVS-TPD films as a hole injection/transport layer show significantly improved performance including lower leakage current, lower turn-on voltage, higher luminance, and stability at high current density, as compared to the control device prepared with PEDOT:PSS.