Harvesting Triplet Excitons with Exciplex Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence Emitters toward High Performance Heterostructured Organic Light-Emitting Field Effect Transistors

UV/Ozone-Induced Interface Engineering for High-Performance Horizontal Organic Light-Emitting Transistors Operating at Low Voltage

Multifunctional organic light-emitting transistors (OLETs), which combine electric-switching and light-producing capabilities into a single device, are attracting increasing interest as promising candidates for new-generation display technology. Despite advancements in the design of organic luminescent materials and the optimization of device geometry configurations, maintaining operating voltage low while enhancing optical performances remains a key challenge in horizontally structured OLETs. Here, a simple and effective interfacial engineering strategy is employed to improve the optical properties of horizontal OLETs operating at low voltage, by introducing ultraviolet ozone (UVO)-induced surface modification on high-k dielectrics. It takes the role to not only control the surface activation states of dielectric layers but also optimize the growth dynamics behavior of channel film benefitting from the strong interfacial interaction between chemically modified dielectric surface and channel seed molecules. The optimized horizontal-channel OLET exhibits a significantly high brightness of 9,484 cd m- 2, more than 25 times greater than that of untreated OLETs (347 cd m- 2), along with a peak EQE of 9.64%, a low operating voltage of 15 V, and good dynamic gate stress stability, outperforming other reported horizontal-channel high-performance OLETs. This work demonstrates that dielectric/semiconductor interface engineering is essential for high-performance transistor-based optoelectronic devices including horizontal OLETs.

Nonvolatile Memory Organic Light-Emitting Transistors

In the field of active-matrix organic light emitting display (AMOLED), large-size and ultra-high-definition AMOLED applications have escalated the demand for the integration density of driver chips. However, as Moore's Law approaches the limit, the traditional technology of improving integration density that relies on scaling down device dimension is facing a huge challenge. Thus, developing a multifunctional and highly integrated device is a promising route for improving the integration density of pixel circuits. Here, a novel nonvolatile memory ferroelectric organic light-emitting transistor (Fe-OLET) device which integrates the switching capability, light-emitting capability and nonvolatile memory function into a single device is reported. The nonvolatile memory function of Fe-OLET is achieved through the remnant polarization property of ferroelectric polymer, enabling the device to maintain light emission at zero gate bias. The reliable nonvolatile memory operations are also demonstrated. The proof-of-concept device optimized through interfacial modification approach exhibits 20 times improved field-effect mobility and five times increased luminance. The integration of nonvolatile memory, switching and light-emitting capabilities within Fe-OLET provides a promising internal-storage-driving paradigm, thus creating a new pathway for deploying storage capacitor-free circuitry to improve the pixel aperture ratio and the integration density of circuits toward the on-chip advanced display applications.

Achieving Bright Organic Light-Emitting Field-Effect Transistors with Sustained Efficiency through Hybrid Contact Design

Organic light-emitting field-effect transistors (OLEFETs) with bilayer structures have been widely studied due to their potential to integrate high-mobility organic transistors and efficient organic light-emitting diodes. However, these devices face a major challenge of imbalance charge transport, leading to a severe efficiency roll-off at high brightness. Here, we propose a solution to this challenge by introducing a transparent organic/inorganic hybrid contact with specially designed electronic structures. Our design aims to steadily accumulate the electrons injected into the emissive polymer, allowing the light-emitting interface to effectively capture more holes even when the hole current increases. Our numerical simulations show that the capture efficiency of these steady electrons will dominate charge recombination and lead to a sustained external quantum efficiency of 0.23% over 3 orders of magnitude of brightness (4 to 7700 cd/m²) and current density (1.2 to 2700 mA/cm²) from -4 to -100 V. The same enhancement is retained even after increasing the external quantum efficiency (EQE) to 0.51%. The high and tunable brightness with stable efficiency offered by hybrid-contact OLEFETs makes them ideal light-emitting devices for various applications. These devices have the potential to revolutionize the field of organic electronics by overcoming the fundamental challenge of imbalance charge transport.

Harvesting Triplet Excitons in High Mobility Emissive Organic Semiconductor for Efficiency Enhancement of Light-Emitting Transistors

Organic light-emitting transistors (OLETs), a kind of highly integrated and minimized optoelectronic device, demonstrate great potential applications in various fields. The construction of high-performance OLETs requires the integration of high charge carrier mobility, strong emission, and high triplet exciton utilization efficiency in the active layer. However, it remains a significant long-term challenge, especially for single component active layer OLETs. Herein, the successful harvesting of triplet excitons in a high mobility emissive molecule, 2,6-diphenylanthracene (DPA), through the triplet-triplet annihilation process is demonstrated. By incorporating a highly emissive guest into the DPA host system, an obvious increase in photoluminescence efficiency along with exciton utilization efficiency results in an obvious enhancement of external quantum efficiency of 7.2 times for OLETs compared to the non-doped devices. Moreover, well-tunable multi-color electroluminescence, especially white emission with Commission Internationale del'Eclairage  of (0.31, 0.35), from OLETs is also achieved by modulating the doping concentration with a controlled energy transfer process. This work opens a new avenue for integrating strong emission and efficient exciton utilization in high-mobility organic semiconductors for high-performance OLETs and advancing their related functional device applications.

Enhanced Efficiency of Exciplex Emission from a 9-Phenylfluorene Derivative

The exciplex-thermally activated delayed fluorescence (exciplex-TADF) system is an excellent candidate for the fabrication of high-efficiency organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) because of its more easily achieved small singlet-triplet energy splitting (ΔE_ST) and doping control. However, exciplex-TADF is still faced with the problems of low external quantum efficiency (η_ext) and unclear effect of structure modification in electron acceptors. Herein, we provide a steric hindrance increase strategy to obtain high-efficiency exciplex emissions. Through introducing a 9-phenylfluorene group into N-ethylcarbazole of the dicyano-substituted 9-phenylfluorene, an electron acceptor material with increased steric hindrance is obtained, which helps the exciplex harvest a larger driving force and higher emission efficiencies. Encouragingly, the obtained OLED displays a maximum η_ext of 25.8%, which is one of the best efficiency values among reported exciplex-OLEDs, simultaneously possessing excellent current efficiency of 83.6 cd A^-1 and power efficiency of 93.7 lm W^-1. It is expected that this work will offer a new avenue for designing electron acceptors for highly efficient exciplex emissions.

New semi-ladder polymers for ambipolar organic light-emitting transistors

Organic light-emitting transistors (OLETs) combine the light-emitting and gate-modulated electrical switching functions in a single device. Over the past two decades, progress has been made in developing new fluorescent semiconductors and device engineering to improve the properties of OLETs. In this paper, we give a brief review of the achievement and disadvantages of the present polymer-based OLETs, while highlighting the recent developments in semi-ladder polymers from our lab for new electroluminescent materials. The special folded molecular structures and unique aggregation states make these polymers suitable for exploration as OLET materials. A short conclusion is provided with a discussion on the challenges and future perspectives in this field.

Application of Triplet-Triplet Annihilation Upconversion in Organic Optoelectronic Devices: Advances and Perspectives

Organic semiconductor materials have been widely used in various optoelectronic devices due to their rich optical and/or electrical properties, which are highly related to their excited states. Therefore, how to manage and utilize the excited states in organic semiconductors is essential for the realization of high-performance optoelectronic devices. Triplet-triplet annihilation (TTA) upconversion is a unique process of converting two non-emissive triplet excitons to one singlet exciton with higher energy. Efficient optical-to-electrical devices can be realized by harvesting sub-bandgap photons through TTA-based upconversion. In electrical-to-optical devices, triplets generated after the combination of electrons and holes also can be efficiently utilized via TTA, which resulted in a high internal conversion efficiency of 62.5%. Currently, many interesting explorations and significant advances have been demonstrated in these fields. In this review, a comprehensive summary of these intriguing advances on developing efficient TTA upconversion materials and their application in optoelectronic devices is systematically given along with some discussions. Finally, the key challenges and perspectives of TTA upconversion systems for further improvement for optoelectronic devices and other related research directions are provided. This review hopes to provide valuable guidelines for future related research and advancement in organic optoelectronics.

Synaptic Plasticity Powering Long-Afterglow Organic Light-Emitting Transistors

Long-lasting luminescence in optoelectronic devices is highly sought after for applications in optical data storage and display technology. While in light-emitting diodes this is achieved by exploiting long-afterglow organic materials as active components, such a strategy has never been pursued in light-emitting transistors, which are still rather unexplored and whose technological potential is yet to be demonstrated. Herein, the fabrication of long-afterglow organic light-emitting transistors (LAOLETs) is reported whose operation relies on an unprecedented strategy based on a photoinduced synaptic effect in an inorganic indium-gallium-zinc-oxide (IGZO) semiconducting channel layer, to power a persistent electroluminescence in organic light-emitting materials. Oxygen vacancies in the IGZO layer, produced by irradiation at λ = 312 nm, free electrons in excess yielding to a channel conductance increase. Due to the slow recombination kinetics of photogenerated electrons to oxygen vacancies in the channel layer, the organic material can be fueled by postsynaptic current and displays a long-lived light-emission (hundreds of seconds) after ceasing UV irradiation. As a proof-of-concept, the LAOLETs are integrated in active-matrix light-emitting arrays operating as visual UV sensors capable of long-lifetime green-light emission in the irradiated regions.

Organic Light-Emitting Transistors Entering a New Development Stage

Organic light-emitting transistors (OLETs) are possibly the smallest integrated optoelectronic devices that combine the switching and amplification mechanisms of organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) and the electroluminescent characteristic of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Such a unique architecture of OLETs makes them ideal for developing the next-generation display technology and electrically pumped lasers for miniaturized photonic devices and circuits. However, the development of OLETs has been slow. Recently, some exciting progress has been made with breakthroughs in high mobility emissive organic semiconductors, construction of high-performance OLETs, and fabrication of novel multifunctional OLETs. This recent slew of advances may represent the advent of a new development stage of OLETs and their related devices and circuits. In this paper, a detailed review of these fantastic advances is presented, with a special focus on the key points for developing high-performance OLETs. Finally, a brief conclusion is provided with a discussion on the challenges and future perspectives in this field.

Recent Advances in Multi-Layer Light-Emitting Heterostructure Transistors

Light-emitting transistors (LETs) have attracted tremendous academic and industrial interest due to their dual functions of electrical switching and light emission in a single device, which can considerably reduce system complexity and manufacturing costs, especially in the area of flat panel and flexible displays as well as lighting and lasers. In recent years, enhanced LET performance has been achieved by introducing multiple-layer heterostructures in the charge-carrying/light-emitting LET channel versus the best-reported performance in single active layer LETs, rendering multi-layer LETs promising candidates for next-generation display technologies. In this review, the fundamental structures and working principles of multi-layer heterostructure LETs are introduced. Next, developments in multi-layer LETs are discussed based on co-planar LETs, non-planar LETs, and vertical LETs including organic, quantum dot, and perovskite light emitters. Finally, this review concludes with a summary and a perspective on the future of this research field.

Thermally activated delayed fluorescence exciplex emitters for high-performance organic light-emitting diodes

Owing to their natural thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) characteristics, the development of exciplex emitters for organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) has witnessed booming progress in recent years. Formed between electron-donating and electron-accepting molecules, exciplexes with intermolecular charge transfer processes have unique advantages compared with unimolecular TADF materials, offering a new way to develop high-performance TADF emitters. In this review, a comprehensive overview of TADF exciplex emitters is presented with a focus on the relationship between the constituents of exciplexes and their electroluminescence performance. We summarize and discuss the latest and most significant developments of TADF exciplex emitters. Notably, the design principles of efficient TADF exciplex emitters are systematically categorized into three systems within this review. These progressive achievements of TADF exciplex emitters point out future challenges to trigger more research endeavors in this growing field.

Enhanced Device Performance with Passivation of the TiO2 Surface Using a Carboxylic Acid Fullerene Monolayer for a SnPb Perovskite Solar Cell with a Normal Planar Structure

Research on tin-lead (SnPb) perovskite solar cells (PSCs) has gained popularity in recent years because of their low band gap, which could be applied to tandem solar cells. However, most of the work is based on inverted PSCs using PEDOT:PSS as the hole-transport layer as normal-structure PSCs show lower efficiency. In this work, the reason behind the low efficiency of normal-structure SnPb PSCs is elucidated and surface passivation has been tested as a method to overcome the problem. In the case of normal PSCs, at the interface between the titania layer and SnPb perovskite, there are many carrier traps observed originating from Ti-O-Sn bonds. In order to avoid the direct contact between titania and the SnPb perovskite layer, the titania surface is passivated with carboxylic acid C₆₀ resulting in an efficiency increase from 5.14 to 7.91%. This will provide a direction of enhancing the efficiency of the normal-structure SnPb PSCs through heterojunction engineering.

Design of High-Performance Organic Light-Emitting Transistors

Organic light-emitting transistors (OLETs) integrate the light-emitting and gate-modulated electrical switching functions in a single device. Over the past decades, progress has been made in developing new fluorescent semiconductors and device engineering that pushed efficiencies of OLET devices to 8%. However, this efficiency of transistors is still too low to be competitive with organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Currently, there are relatively few suitable organic fluorescent semiconductors suitable for OLETs, and the mechanism of electroluminescence in the devices is still not fully understood. In this mini-review, we discuss the state of highly efficient OLETs and plausible approaches to those unsettled problems. Since this is a mini-review, we will not be able to cover all the excellent work in the literature. Readers are encouraged to read other excellent reviews published earlier.

Converting an Organic Light-Emitting Diode from Blue to White with Bragg Modes

Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) have been established as versatile light sources that allow for easy integration in large-area surfaces and flexible substrates. In addition, the low fabrication cost of OLEDs renders them particularly attractive as general lighting sources. Current methods for the fabrication of white-light OLEDs rely on the combination of multiple organic emitters and/or the incorporation of multiple cavity modes in a thick active medium. These architectures introduce formidable challenges in both device design and performance improvements, namely, the decrease of efficiency with increasing brightness (efficiency roll-off) and short operational lifetime. Here we demonstrate, for the first time, white-light generation in an OLED consisting of a sub-100 nm thick blue single-emissive layer coupled to the photonic Bragg modes of a dielectric distributed Bragg reflector (DBR). We show that the Bragg modes, although primarily located inside the DBR stack, can significantly overlap with the emissive layer, thus efficiently enhancing emission and outcoupling of photons at selected wavelengths across the entire visible light spectrum. Moreover, we show that color temperature can be tuned by the DBR parameters, offering great versatility in the optimization of white-light emission spectra.

Efficient Cadmium-Free Inverted Red Quantum Dot Light-Emitting Diodes

Here, we report an efficient inverted red indium phosphide (InP) comprising QD (InP/ZnSe/ZnS, core/shell structure) light-emitting diode (QLED) by modulating an interfacial contact between the electron transport layer and emissive InP-QDs and applying self-aging approach. The red InP-QLED with optimized interfacial contact exhibits a significant improvement in maximum external quantum efficiency and current efficiency from 4.42 to 10.2% and 4.70 to 10.8 cd/A, respectively, after 69 days of self-aging, which is an almost 2.3-fold improvement compared to the fresh device. The analysis indicates the consecutive reduction in electron injection and accumulation in the emissive QD due to changes in the conduction band minimum of ZnMgO (0.1 eV after 10 days of storage) through a downward vacuum-level shift according to the aging times. During the device aging periods, the oxygen vacancy of ZnMgO reduces, which leads to lower the conductivity of ZnMgO. As a result, charge balance of the device is improved with the suppression of exciton quenching at the interface of ZnMgO and InP-QD.

Organic Light-Emitting Field-Effect Transistors: Device Geometries and Fabrication Techniques

Organic light-emitting transistors (OLETs), as novel and attractive kinds of organic electronic devices, have gained extensive attention from both academia and industry. The unique device architectures can simultaneously combine the electrical switching functionality of organic field-effect transistors and the light generation capability of organic light-emitting diodes in a single device, thereby holding great promise for reducing the complicated processes of next-generation pixel circuitry. This review involves the design, fabrication, and applications of OLETs with a comprehensive coverage of this field with the aim to give a deep insight into the intrinsic mechanisms of devices. Challenges and future prospects of OLETs are also discussed.

Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence in Polymer-Small-Molecule Exciplex Blends for Solution-Processed Organic Light-Emitting Diodes

The photophysics of an exciplex state formed between a small molecule and a polymer is investigated in this work. The results obtained with this blend show the strong potential of polymer-small-molecule blends for triplet harvesting in organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) via thermally activated delayed fluorescence. The exciplex formed between poly( N-vinylcarbazole) (PVK) and 2,4,6-tris[3-(diphenylphosphinyl)phenyl]-1,3,5-triazine (PO-T2T) shows yellow-green emission and is applied in solution-processed OLEDs. The excellent film-forming properties in this blend allow easy spin coating and potential use in other solution-processing techniques, such as slot die coating. In this work, we critically address the reverse intersystem crossing mechanism in the presented exciplex system, including the role of local triplet states. Moreover, we bring a clear physical meaning to the decay components of the exciplex emission, including the decay occurring in a power-law fashion that is often ignored in the literature.

Exciplex: An Intermolecular Charge-Transfer Approach for TADF

Organic materials that display thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) are a striking class of functional materials that have witnessed a booming progress in recent years. In addition to pure TADF emitters achieved by the subtle manipulations of intramolecular charge transfer processes with sophisticated molecular structures, a new class of efficient TADF-based OLEDs with emitting layer formed by blending electron donor and acceptor molecules that involve intermolecular charge transfer have also been fabricated. In contrast to pure TADF materials, the exciplex-based systems can realize small Δ E_ST (0-0.05 eV) much more easily since the electron and hole are positioned on two different molecules, thereby giving small exchange energy. Consequently, exciplex-based OLEDs have the prospective to maximize the TADF contribution and achieve theoretical 100% internal quantum efficiency. Therefore, the challenging issue of achieving small Δ E_ST in organic systems could be solved. In this article, we summarize and discuss the latest and most significant developments regarding these rapidly evolving functional materials, wherein the majority of the reported exciplex forming systems are categorized into two subgroups, viz. (a) exciplex as TADF emitters and (b) those as hosts for fluorescent, phosphorescent and TADF dopants according to their structural features and applications. The working mechanisms of the direct electroluminescence from the donor/acceptor interface and the exciplex-forming systems as cohost for the realization of high efficiency OLEDs are reviewed and discussed. This article delivers a summary of the current progresses and achievements of exciplex-based researches and points out the future challenges to trigger more research endeavors to this growing field.