Seminar Report Light Emitting Polymer

Seminar report Light Emitting Polymer
ABSTRACT
The seminar is about polymers that can emit light when a voltage is
applied to it. The structure comprises of a thin film of semiconducting polymer
sandwiched between two electrodes (cathode and anode).When electrons and
holes are inected from the electrodes! the recombination of these charge
carriers ta"es place! which leads to emission of light .The band gap! ie. The
energy difference between valence band and conduction band determines the
wavelength (colour) of the emitted light.
They are usually made by in" et printing process. #n this method red
green and blue polymer solutions are etted into well defined areas on the
substrate. This is because! PLE$s are soluble in common organic solvents li"e
toluene and %ylene .The film thic"ness uniformity is obtained by multi&passing
(slow) is by heads with drive per no''le technology .The pi%els are controlled
by using active or passive matri%.
The advantages include low cost! small si'e! no viewing angle
restrictions! low power re(uirement! biodegradability etc. They are poised to
replace L)$s used in laptops and )*Ts used in des"top computers today.
Their future applications include fle%ible displays which can be folded!
wearable displays with interactive features! camouflage etc.
+
Electronics , communication gptc.nta
INTRODUCTION
-fter watching the brea"fast news on T.! you roll up the set li"e a
large hand"erchief! and stuff it into your briefcase. /n the bus or train
ourney to your office! you can pull it out and catch up with the latest
stoc" mar"et (uotes on )01).
& Somewhere in the 2argil sector! a platoon commander of the
#ndian -rmy readies for the regular satellite updates that will give him
the latest terrain pictures of the border in his sector. 3e unrolls a plastic&
li"e map and hoo"s it to the unit4s satellite telephone. #n seconds! the map
is refreshed with the latest high resolution camera images grabbed by an
#ndian satellite which passed over the region ust minutes ago.
$on5t imagine these scenarios at least not for too long.The current
67 billion&dollar display mar"et! dominated by L)$s (standard in
laptops) and cathode ray tubes ()*Ts! standard in televisions)! is seeing
the introduction of full&color LEP&driven displays that are more efficient!
brighter! and easier to manufacture. #t is possible that organic light&
emitting materials will replace older display technologies much li"e
compact discs have relegated cassette tapes to storage bins.
The origins of polymer /LE$ technology go bac" to the discovery of
conducting polymers in +899!which earned the co&discoverers& -lan :.
3eeger ! -lan ;. <ac$iarmid and 3ide"i Shira"awa & the =777 0obel pri'e
in chemistry. >ollowing this discovery ! researchers at )ambridge ?niversity
?2 discovered in +887 that conducting polymers also e%hibit
electroluminescence and the light emitting polymer(LEP) was born@
=
HISTORY OF LIGHT EMITING POLYMER
Polymers
<uch of the terminology we will encounter for polymers! also
aAectionately "nown as macromolecules! rose out of the combined eAorts of
organic chemists! who created them! and the physical chemists! who
characteri'ed their physical properties. Polymers are chains of smaller
molecular components! called monomers. -s a simple e%ample! the polymer
polyethylene (PE) is constructed (or polymeri'ed) from the precursor ethylene
by brea"ing the double bond in the ethylene molecule! as shown successively in
>igures + and = below.

>igure +B The double&bonded precursor to polyethyleneBethylene

>igure =B The single&bonded polymer polyethylene
C

Polymers e%ist in many varieties ranging from the very simple repeating
patterns of chains of monomers! to the somewhat more sophisticated molecular
patterns as found in copolymersD polymers composed of two or more chemically
distinguishable monomers. )opolymers! in turn! can e%ist in many conurations!
owing to the many ways the individual monomers can be ordered. There are
bloc" polymers! in which large sections are repeated along the polymer chainE
graft polymers where another polymer is attached as a side chainE random
polymers where the deferent monomer units ta"e on! as the name suggests a
random ordering to form the polymer chainE and so on. -nother important class
of polymers is conugated polymers. )onugated polymers consist of carbon
bac"bones with alternating single and double bonds and have shown great
potential as light emitting materials.
The first organic electroluminescent devices were discovered around the
time the first light emitting diodes (LE$s) were introduced into the )ommercial
mar"et in +8F=. Li"e today! early devices were hampered by fabrication and
pac"aging problems and short lifetimes Electroluminescence (EL) was first
observed in conugated polymers in +887 by 1urroughs et al. ! which reveals the
relative youth of this field. Evidence for electro luminescence from the seminal
paper by 1urroughs et al. is shown in >igure C.
6
Figure 3: Electroluminescence in PPV. From Burroughs[4]
Prior to this! electroluminescence had been witnessed in organic
molecules by Tang and .an Sly"e in +8G9! who revived interest in organic EL.
-ll of these were originally preceded by the wor" of Partridge in +8GC ! whose
wor" largely went unnoticed. Since the advent of electroluminescent polymers!
conugated polymeric materials with emissions spanning the broad spectrum of
visible and non&visible radiation (near infrared) have been fabricated! as shown
in >igure 6. - voltage tunable&luminescent device has been fabricated using
poly (thiophene) blends. /ne group has created white&light devices by using
appropriate combinations of these EL materials. <any polymers are now "nown
to display electroluminescence. The similar electroluminescent (EL) and photo
luminescent (PL) spectra of these materials suggest that the same mechanisms
are responsible for both phenomena! ustifying! in many cases! why these terms
are used interchangeably in the literature.
H
SUBJECT DETAILING

LIGHT EMITTING POLYMER
#t is a polymer that emits light when a voltage is applied to it. The
structure comprises a thin&film of semiconducting polymer sandwiched
between two electrodes (anode and cathode) as shown in fig.+. When
electrons and holes are inected from the electrodes! the recombination of
these charge carriers ta"es place! which leads to emission of light that
escapes through glass substrate. The band gap! i.e. energy difference
between valence band and conduction band of the semiconducting polymer
determines the wavelength (colour) of the emitted light.
Characterization of light-emitting polymer
Light&emitting polymer technology is set to open a complete new world
of applications for a wide range of products! such as small (and eventually
large) flat screen displays! warning signs! decorative lighting and illuminated
advertising +!=. The active layer of polymer&LE$s can be prepared by simple
coating methods! such as spin coating. -ll colors are now available for these
displays which can be made as thin as one millimeter. 3igh brightness can be
achieved at low power
F
)onsumption and long life times of more than C7777 hours. Light
emitting polymers are organic! conugated! macromolecules of very high
molecular weight. -n important e%ample are phenyl&substituted poly(p&
phenylene vinylene) (PP.). To ma"e them soluble and to process them into thin
films they are modified! for e%ample! by introducing al"yl or al"o%y side
chains. >igure + shows the structure of a commercially available phenyl
al"o%yphenyl PP. copolymer. The compound is soluble in aromatic
hydrocarbons! cyclic ethers and certain "etons.The (uality of the film coating
process (and thus also the resulting polymer&LE$) strongly depends on the
polymeri'ation and the resulting molecular weight dataImolecular weight
distribution. The latter parameters can be monitored
+. Structure of phenyl al"o%yphenyl PP. copolymer
9
=./verlay of chromatograms obtained simultaneously by diode array
and refractive inde% detection settingIevaluation
Conditions
Sample preparation
Samples were dissolved in stabli'ed T3>
and filtered (concentration 7.+ J)
Column
C K PL;el mi%ed )! 9.H K C77 mm! H Lm
(-gilent pIn 988++;P&<M))
Polymer standards
Polystyrene Easy)al vial standards
(-gilent pIn H7F6&G=G+)
Flow rate
+ mlImin
Column compartment temperature
=7N )
Injection volume
+77 Ll
easily and precisely by ;P) with -gilent Technologies PL gel columns and
tetrahydrofuran as eluent. >igure = shows an overlay of the diode array and
refractive inde% detector signals of a phenyl al"o%yphenyl PP. copolymer
analysis. The chromatograms and the ;P) report obtained with the
G
)hemStation ;P) data analysis software (figure C) show the high (uality
resulting fromB
O 1road molecular weight distribution ranging from about +7C to 9K+7F $alton
O Large polydispersity $ of about C.9
O .ery high molecular weight averages! e.g. <w is larger than G77777 $alton
O Low concentration of additives and other compounds (figure =)
O the purity of the polymer pea" as proven by the overlay of ?.&visible spectra
ac(uired at various retention times (figure 6)
C. Single page ;P) report including method parameters! molar mass
distribution and molecular weight data
6. Proof of PP. pea" purity by overlay of seven spectra ac(uired at different retention times
8
CONSTRUCTION
Light emitting devices concict of active Pemitting layer sandwiched between
an cathode and a anode indium Ptin o%ide s typically used for the anode and
aluminum or calcium of the cathode fig=.+(a) shows the structure of a simple
single layer device with electrodes and an active layer. Single&layer devices
typically wor" only under a forward $) bias. >ig.=.+ (b) shows a
symmetrically configured alternating current light&emitting (S)-LE) device
that wor"s under -) as well as forward and rivers $) bias.
#n order to manufacture the polymer! a spin&coating machine is used that
has a plate spinning at the speed of a few thousand rotations per minute. The
robot pours the plastic over the rotating plate! which! in turn! evenly spreads the
polymer on the plate. This results in an e%tremely fine layer of the polymer
having a thic"ness of +77 nanometers. /nce the polymer is evenly spread! it is
ba"ed in an oven to evaporate any remnant li(uid. The same technology is used
to coat the )$s.
+7
INK JT PRINTIN!
-lthough in"et printing is well established in printing graphic
images! only now are applications emerging in printing electronics
materials. -ppro%imately a do'en companies have demonstrated the use of
in"et
printing for PLE$ displays and this techni(ue is now at the forefront of
developments in digital electronic materials deposition. 3owever! turning
in"et printing into a manufacturing process for PLE$ displays has re(uired
significant developments of the in"et print head! the in"s and the substrates
(see >ig.=.+.+).)reating a full colour! in"et printed display re(uires the
precise metering of volumes in the order of pico liters. *ed! green and blue
polymer solutions are etted into well defined areas with an angle of flight
deviation of less than HQ. To ensure the displays have uniform emission! the
film thic"ness has to be very uniform.

>ig. =.+.+ Schematic of the in" et printing for PLE$ materials
++
>or some materials and display applications the film thic"ness
uniformity may have to be better than R= per cent. - conventional in"et
head may have volume variations of up to R=7 per cent from the hundred or
so no''les that comprise the head and! in the worst case! a no''le may be
bloc"ed. >or graphic art this variation can be averaged out by multi&passing
with the (uality to the print dependent on the number of passes. -lthough
multi&passing could be used for PLE$s the process would be unacceptably
slow. *ecently! Spectra! the world5s largest supplier of industrial in"et
heads! has started to manufacture heads where the drive conditions for each
no''le can be adusted individually P so called drive&per&no''le ($P0).
Litre% in the ?S-! a subsidiary of )$T! has developed software to allow
$P0 to be used in its printers. .olume variations across the head of R= per
cent can be achieved using $P0. #n addition to very good volume control!
the head has been designed to give drops of in" with a very small angle&of&
flight variation. - =77 dots per inch (dpi) display has colour pi%els only 67
microns wideE the latest print heads have a deviation of less than RH microns
when placed 7.H mm from the substrate. #n addition to the precision of the
print head! the formulation of the in" is "ey to ma"ing effective and
attractive display devices. The formulation of a dry polymer material into an
in" suitable for PLE$ displays re(uires that the in"ets reliably at high
fre(uency and that on reaching the surface of the substrate! forms a wet film
in the correct location and dries to a uniformly flat film. The film then has to
perform as a useful electro&optical material. *ecent progress in in"
formulation and printer technology has allowed 677 mm panels to be colour
printed
"CTI# "N$ P"SSI# %"TRI&
<any displays consist of a matri% of pi%els! formed at the intersection
of rows and columns deposited on a substrate. Each pi%el is a light emitting
+=
diode such as a PLE$! capable of emitting light by being turned on or off! or
any state in between. )oloured displays are formed by positioning matrices
of red! green and blue pi%els very close together. To control the pi%els!
and so form the image re(uired! either 4passive4 or 4active4 matri% driver
methods are used.
Pi%el displays can either by active or passive matri%. >ig. =.+.=
shows the differences between the two matri% types! active displays have
transistors so that when a particular pi%el is turned on it remains on until it is
turned off.
The matri% pi%els are accessed se(uentially. -s a result passive
displays are prone to flic"ering since each pi%el only emits light for such a
small length of time. -ctive displays are preferred! however it is technically
challenging to incorporate so many transistors into such small a compact
area.

+C
>ig =.+.= -ctive and passive matrices
#n passive matri% systems! each row and each column of the display
has its own driver! and to create an image! the matri% is rapidly scanned to
enable every pi%el to be switched on or off as re(uired. -s the current
re(uired to brighten a pi%el increases (for higher brightness displays)! and as
the display gets larger! this process becomes more difficult since higher
currents have to flow down the control lines. -lso! the controlling current
has to be present whenever the pi%el is re(uired to light up. -s a result!
passive matri% displays tend to be used mainly where cheap! simple displays
are re(uired
-ctive matri% displays solve the problem of efficiently addressing
each pi%el by incorporating a transistor (T>T) in series with each pi%el which
provides control over the current and hence the brightness of individual
pi%el.
Lower currents can now flow down the control wires since this have
only to program the T>T driver ! and the wires can be finer as a result .also!
the transistor is able to hold the current setting! "eeping the pi%el at the
re(uired brightness! until it receives another control signal . >uture demands
on displays will in path re(uire larger area displays so the active matri%
mar"ed segment will grow faster.
PLE$ devises are especially suitable for incorporating into active
matri% displays! as they are processeble in solution and! can be manufactured
using in" get printing over larger areas.
+6
'"SIC PRINCIP( "N$ TC)NO(O!*
Polymer properties are dominated by the covalent nature of carbon
bonds ma"ing up the organic molecules bac"bone. The immobility of
electrons that form the covalent bonds e%plain why plastics were classified
almost e%clusively insulators until the +8975s.
- single carbon&carbon bond is composed of two electrons being
shared in overlapping wave functions. >or each carbon! the four electrons in
the valence bond form tetrahedral oriented hybridi'ed sp
C
orbital5s from the s
, p orbital5s described (uantum mechanically as geometrical wave
functions.
The properties of the spherical s orbital and bimodal p orbital5s combine into
four e(ual! unsymmetrical! tetrahedral oriented hybridi'ed sp
C
orbitals. The
bond formed by the overlap of these hybridi'ed orbitals from two carbon
atoms is referred to as a Ssigma5 bond.
- conugated Spi5 bond refers to a carbon chain or ring whose bonds
alternate between single and double (or triple) bonds. The bonding system
tend to form stronger bonds than might be first indicated by a structure with
single bonds.
The single bond formed between two double bonds inherits the
characteristics of the double bonds since the single bond is formed by two
sp
=
hybrid orbitals. The p orbitals of the single bonded carbons form an
effective Spi5 bond ultimately leading to the significant conse(uence of Spi5
electron de&locali'ation.
+H
?nli"e the Ssigma5 bond electrons! which are trapped between the carbons!
the Spi5 bond electrons have relative mobility. -ll that is re(uired to provide
an effective conducting band is the o%idation or reduction of carbons in the
bac"bone. Then the electrons have mobility! as do the holes generated by the
absence of electrons through o%idation with a dopant li"e iodine.
BASIC STRUCTURE AND WORKING
-n LEP display solely consists of the polymer material manufactured on
a substrate of glass or plastic and doesn5t re(uire additional elements li"e
polari'es that are typical of L)$s. LEP emits light as a function of its electrical
operation.
The basic LEP consists of a stac" of thin organic polymer layers
sandwiched between a transport anode and a metallic cathode. >igure shows the
basic structure. The indium&tin&o%ide (#T/) coated glass is coated with a
polymer. /n the top of it! there is a metal electrode of -l! Li! <g or -g. When a
bias
.oltage is applied! holes and electrons move into the polymer. Light&
Emitting Polymers
FThese moving holes and electrons combine together to form hole
electron pairs "nown as Te%actions5. These e%actions are in e%cited
When this energy drop occurs light comes out from the device. This
phenomenon is called electroluminescence. #t is shown in figure =,C. The
greater the difference in energyIbetween the hole and the electron! the higher
the fre(uency of the emitted light. The development of blue LE> material
enthused the world about the possibility full colour display.
+F
Two types of displaysB The LEP displays are two types! namely! passive
matri% and active matri%. To drive a passive matri% display! the current is
passed through select pi%els by applying a voltage to the drivers attached to the
corresponding rows and columns. These schemes pattern the anode and cathode
into perpendicular rows and columns and apply a data signal to the columns
while addressing the se(uentially. -s the number of rows in the display
increases! each pi%el must be red brightness by a factor of the number or row
times the desired brightness! which can e%ceed =7777cdIm=.the current re(uired
to achieve this brightness! levels limits this architecture to relatively small
screen si'es. Philips >lat $isplay systems (Sunnyvale! )-) and $uPont
$isplays have demonstrated full&colour passive matri% displays. #n active matri%
architecture! a thin film polysilicon transistor on the substrate addresses each
pi%el individually. -ctive matri% displays are not limited by current
consideration. Sei"o& Epson! Toshiba (To"yo! :apan)! and Samsung (Seoul!
2orea) have now demonstrated full colour active matri% displays. /ne e%citing
possibility is that polymer transistors! which can be
+9
Light&Emitting Polymers manufactured by techni(ues similar to those used
for LEP patterning! could be used to drive an LEP display. Such an approach would
potentially lend itself to roll&to&roll processing on fle%ible substrates.
Performance table of different colours of LEP
+G
(I!)T %ISSION
The production of photons from the energy gap of a material is very
similar for organic and ceramic semiconductors. 3ence a brief description of
the process of electroluminescence is in order.
Electroluminescence is the process in which electromagnetic(E<)
radiation is emitted from a material by passing an electrical current through
it. The fre(uency of the E< radiation is directly related to the energy of
separation between electrons in the conduction band and electrons in the
valence band. These bands form the periodic arrangement of atoms in the
crystal structure of the semiconductor. #n a ceramic semiconductor li"e
;a-s or UnS! the energy is released when an electron from the conduction
band falls into a hole in the valence band. The electronic device that
accomplishes this electron&hole interaction is that of a diode! which consists
of an n&type material (electron rich) interfaced with p&type material (hole
rich). When the diode is forward biased (electrons across interface from n to
p by an applied voltage) the electrons cross a neutrali'ed 'one at the
interface to fill holes and thus emit energy.
The situation is very similar for organic semiconductors with two
notable e%ceptions. The first e%ception stems from the nature of the
conduction band in an organic system while the second e%ception is the
recognition of how conduction occurs between two organic molecules.
+8
With non&organic semiconductors there is a band gap associated with
1rillion 'ones that discrete electron energies based on the periodic order of
the crystalline lattice. The free electron5s mobility from lattice site to lattice
site is clearly sensitive to the long&term order of the material. This is not so
for the organic semiconductor. The energy gap of the polymer is more a
function of the individual bac"bone! and the mobility of electrons and holes
are limited to the linear or branched directions of the molecule they
statistically inhabit. The efficiency of electronIhole transport between
polymer molecules is also uni(ue to polymers. Electron and hole mobility
occurs as a Shopping5 mechanism which is significant to the practical
development of organic emitting devices.
PP. has a fully conugated bac"bone (figure +)! as a conse(uence the
3/</ (e%p lin" remember Fth form@) of the macromolecule stretches
across the entire chain! this "ind of situation is ideal for the transport of
chargeE in simple terms! electrons can simply VhopV from one W orbital to the
ne%t since they are all lin"ed.
>igure .+ - demonstration of the full conugation of W
Electrons in PP..The delocali'ed W electron clouds are coloured yellow.
=7
PP. is a semiconductor. Semiconductors are so called because they have
conductivity that is midway between that of a conductor and an insulator. While
conductors such as copper conduct electricity with little to no energy (in this
case potential difference or voltage) re(uired to V"ic"&startV a current! insulators
such as glass re(uire huge amounts of energy to conduct a current. Semi&
conductors re(uire modest amounts of energy in order to carry a current! and are
used in technologies such as transistors! microchips and LE$s.
1and theory is used to e%plain the semi&conductance of PP.! see figure
H. #n a diatomic molecule! a molecular orbital (</) diagram can be drawn
showing a single 3/</ and L?</! corresponding to a low energy W orbital
and a high energy WX orbital. This is simple enough! however! every time an
atom is added to
the molecule a further </ is added to the </ diagram. Thus for a PP. chain
which consists of Y+C77 atoms involved in conugation! the L?</s and
3/</s will be so numerous as to be effectively continuous! this results in two
bands! a valence band (3/</s! W orbital5s) and a conduction band (L?</s!
WX orbital5s). They are separated by a band gap which is typically 7&+7e.
(chec") and depends on the type of material. PP. has a band gap of =.=e. (e%p
e.). The valence band is filled with all the W electrons in the chain! and thus is
entirely filled! while the conduction band! being made up of empty WX orbital5s
(the L?</s) is entirely empty).
#n order for PP. to carry a charge! the charge carriers (e.g. electrons) must be
given enough energy to VumpV this barrier & to proceed from the valence band
to the conduction band where they are free to ride the PP. chain5s empty
L?</s
=+

>igure =.=.= - series of orbital diagrams.
O - diatomic molecule has a bonding and an anti&bonding orbital!
two atomic orbital5s gives two molecular orbital5s. The electrons arrange
themselves following! -uf 1au and the Pauli Principle.
O - single atom has one atomic orbital
O - tri atomic molecule has three molecular orbitals! as before one
bonding! one anti&bonding! and in addition one non&bonding orbital.
O >our atomic orbitals give four molecular orbitals.
O <any atoms results in so many closely spaced orbitals that they
are effectively continuous and non&(uantum. The orbital sets are called
bands. #n this case the bands are separated by a band gap! and thus the
substance is either an insulator or a semi&conductor.
==
#t is already apparent that conduction in polymers is not similar to that
of metals and inorganic conductorsE however there is more to this story@ >irst
we need to imagine a conventional diode system! i.e. PP. sandwiched
between an electron inector (or cathode)! and an anode. The electron
inector needs to inect electrons of sufficient energy to e%ceed the band gapE
the anode operates by removing electrons from the polymer and
conse(uently leaving regions of positive charge called holes. The anode is
conse(uently referred to as the hole inector.
#n this model! holes and electrons are referred to as charge carriersE
both are free to traverse the PP. chains and as a result will come into
contact. #t is logical for an electron to fill a hole when the opportunity is
presented and they are said to capture one another. The capture of oppositely
charged carriers is referred to as recombination. When captured! an electron
and a hole form neutral&bound e%cited states (termed e%citons) that (uic"ly
decay and produce a photon up to =HJ of the time! 9HJ of the time! decay
produces only heat! this is due to the the possible multiplicities of the
e%citon. The fre(uency of the photon is tied to the band&gap of the polymerE
PP. has a band&gap of =.=e.! which corresponds to yellow&green light.
0ot all conducting polymers fluoresce! polyacetylene! one of the first
conducting&polymers to be discovered was found to fluoresce at e%tremely low
levels of intensity. E%citons are still captured and still decay! however they
mostly decay to release heat. This is what you may have e%pected since
electrical resistance in most conductors causes the conductor to become hot.
)apture is essential for a current to be sustained. Without capture the
charge densities of holes and electrons would build up! (uic"ly preventing
any inection of charge carriers. #n effect no current would flow.
=C
)/<P-*#S/0 T-1LE
This table
compares the
main
electronic
displays
technologies.
Each display
type is
described
briefly! and
the relative
advantages
and
disadvantage
s are
reviewed.
$isplay Type
"cronym missive or
Re+lective
Tec,nolo-y "dvanta-es $isadvanta-es
)athode *ay
Tube
)*T Emissive The )*T is a
vacuum tube
using a hot
filament to
generate
thermo&
electrons!
electrostatic
andIor magnetic
fields to focus
the electrons
into a beam
attracted to the
high voltage
anode which is
the phosphor
coated screen.
Electrons
colliding with
the phosphor
emit luminous
radiation. )olor
)*Ts typically
use C electron
sources (guns)
to target red!
green! and blue
patterns on
phosphor
the screen.
.ery bright
Wide viewing
angle
0o mas"! so no
pi%el si'e
limitation for
mono
<inimum pi%el
si'e 7.=mm
(color)
Low cost
standard si'es
Low cost high&
res color
Wide operating
temperature
range
<oderate
(=7"hrsZ) life
3igh (H". to
=7".Z) drive
voltages
0ot a flat panel
(rare e%ceptions)
)an be fragile!
particularly
nec"&end
3eavy
Source of M&
rays unless
screened
-ffected by
magnetic fields
$ifficult to
recycle or
dispose of

=6

Li(uid )rystal
$isplay

L)$

*eflective

-n L)$ uses
the properties of
li(uid crystals in
an electric field
to guide light
from oppositely
polari'ed front
and bac" display
plates. The
li(uid crystal
wor"s as a
helical director
(when the driver
presents the
correct electric
field) to guide
the light through
87N from one
plate

Small! static!
mono panels can
be very low cost
1oth mono and
color panels
widely available

1ac"light adds
cost! and often
limits the useful
life
*e(uires -)
drive waveform
>ragile unless

C)%ISTR* ')IN$ (P
LEPs are constructed from a special class of polymers called conugated
polymers. Plastic materials with metallic and semiconductor characteristics are
called conugated polymers. These polymers posses delocali'ed pi electrons
along the bac"bone! whose mobility shows properties of semiconductors.
-lso this gives it the ability to support positive and negative carriers with high
mobility along the polymer chain. The charge transport mechanism in
conugated polymers is different from traditional inorganic semiconductors. The
amorphous chain morphology results in inhomogeneous Light&Emitting
Polymers broadening of the energies of the chain segments and leads to hopping
type transport. )onugated polymers have already found application as
conductor in battery electrodes! transparent conductive coatings! capacitor
=H
electrolytes and through hole platting in P)15s. There are fast displaying
traditional materials such as natural polymers etc owing to better physical and
mechanical properties and amenability to various processes.
%"NUF"CTURIN!
#n order to manufacture the polymer two techni(ues is used. Spin coating
process This techni(ue involves spinning a dis"! that is glass substrate at a fi%ed
angular velocity and letting a small amount of polymer solution to drop on the
top of the dis". #t is shown in the figure. Spin coating machine used has a few
thousands rotations per minute. The robot pours the plastic over the rotating
plate! which in turn! evenly spreads the polymer on the plate. This results in an
e%tremely fine layer of the polymer having a thic"ness of +77 nanometers. /nce
the polymer is evenly spread! it is a[ba"ed in an oven to evaporate any remnant
li(uid
<anufacturing of polymer light&emitting device
;ravure printing offers a fast and cost&efficient roll&to&roll techni(ue with
high potentials in the manufacturing of polymer light emitting devices and
ade(uate patterning resolution. #n this techni(ue! the pattern to be printed is
engraved into a rotational printing cylinder. $uring printing! the printing in" is
filled into the engraved cells by the use of a fle%ible doctor blade to remove the
e%cess in" and to ensure that the cells are filled with a reproducible amount of
in" and is then transferred to the foil when the cylinder is brought into contact
with the surface of the substrate foil. 3owever! e%tremely thin and uniform
PLE$ structures are setting high demands on the process.
=F
Printing of patterned IT anodes:
The aim was the development of a patterned anode of transparent
conducting #T/ on PET foils by a printing process based on #T/ nano particle
dispersions. The #T/ patterns thus prepared were to be used as transparent
anodes in PLE$ devices structures. ). 1efore the start of this proect! crystalline
#T/ nano particles had been developed and dispersed in different solvents
mainly for large area coating (e.g. by spin coating).6 1y addition of a small
amount of a polymeri'able hydroly'ed silane and a photo starter! transparent
conducting #T/ coatings were thus obtained on plastic substrates including foils
by a ?.&curing at low temperatures (\+C7N)) with a sheet resistance of = to H
"]s( and a transmittance of 87 J in the visible range (thic"ness H77 nm). -
post treatment under reducing conditions (0=I3=) at low temperatures (\+C7N))
resulted in a further decrease in the sheet resistance below +ohm s(
(a) (b)
=9
(c)
Photographs of a) the lab&scale gravure printing machine! b) the gravure plate
with different patterns (areas are C9%+=9 mm=in si'e)! and c) the diamond&
engraved cells pattern (++7 linesIcm).
#n a first set of e%periments it was intended to obtain full&tone printed
areas with a high thic"ness homogeneity using a lab&scale gravure printer for
testing (>igure =a! Labratester & 0. Schl^fli <aschinen) and a plate with
rectangular stripes (>igure =b , =c! C9K+=9 mm= each) in order to find the
wor"ing parameters for #T/ coatings such as the feasible printing speed or the
characteristics of the gravure cavities. #n general! film formation in gravure
printing re(uires a coalescence of adacent! single li(uid dots while at the same
time! however! a spreading of the li(uid droplets or of the film beyond this
coalescence has to be avoided to retain the printed structures.H This re(uires an
elaborate adustment of the rheological properties of the printing in"s and a
thorough control of film drying. Typical printing speeds up to 67 mImin thus
could be reali'ed without loss of homogeneity. While homogeneous coatings
could be generally obtained for line densities ranging from 67 to =+7 linesIcm!
this parameter also fundamentally determines the thic"ness of the resulting
coatings as the volume of the engraved cavities is decreasing with the line
=G
density. #n view of the final application to a direct patterning! however! this
means that a compromise has to
be found between the desired coating thic"ness and the re(uired
resolution of the printing as the theology of the in"s can only be varied in
certain limits mainly given by the limitation in the solid content and by
problems arising from the use of printing additives.H $epending on the #T/
solid content in the in"s and the geometry of the gravure cells! thus thic"nesses
ranging from 7.= to more than + Lm were reali'ed in a single printing step.
$ifferent #T/ in"s based on solvents with medium and high boiling points were
tested. #n addition! comparative e%periments with different surface modifiers for
#T/ were initiated to minimi'e the interaction between the particles during film
formation as a maor re(uirement for optically transparent coatings. The total
content of solvents and additives in the printing in" generally is a very
important parameter for coating (uality! as it also influences the film drying and
determines the content of organic residues in the resulting #T/ film and hence
the porosity.
"$#"NT"!S
O *e(uire only C.C volts and have lifetime of more than C7!777
hours.
O Low power consumption.
O Self luminous.
O 0o viewing angle dependence.
O $isplay fast moving images with optimum clarity.
O )ost much less to manufacture and to run than )*Ts because the
active material is plastic.
O )an be scaled to any dimension.
O >ast switching speeds that are typical of LE$s.
=8
O 0o environmental draw bac"s.
O 0o power in ta"e when switched off.
O -ll colours of the visible spectrum are possible by appropriate
choose of polymers.
O Simple to use technology than conventional solid state LE$s and
lasers.
O .ery slim flat panel.
They don5t additional elements li"e the bac"lights! filters
and polari'es that are typical of L)$s.
DISADVANTAGES
O .ulnerable to shorts due to contamination of substrate surface by
dust.
O .oltage drops.
O <echanically fragile.
O Potential not yet reali'ed.
(I%IT"TIONS
+. Aging of LEP:
/ne of the maor barriers to the commercial development of LEP is its
useful lifetime. Even under ideal conditions! the light intensity gradually
decreases and some discrete regions become totally dar". This phenomenon is
the Saging of LEP5. /ne method to reduce or stop aging is that the final
soldering of the displays is to be done in an airtight environment because as
soon as the LEP molecules come in contact with o%ygen! these would
C7
disintegrate. The solution was to do the final soldering in a glass ar filled
nitrogen. The enclosure protects the device from impurities and provides a
higher degree of efficiency by giving the screen an estimated life span of C7!777
wor"ing hours.
=. Space charge effect:
The effect of space charge on the voltage&current characteristics and
current&voltage characteristics becomes more pronounced when the difference
in the electron hole nobilities is increased. )onse(uences of space charge
include lowering of the electric fields near the contacts and therefore
suppression of the inected tunnel currents and strongly asymmetric
recombination profiles for une(ual mobility thereby decreasing the
luminescence and hence decreases the efficiency. *esearch is underway to
overcome this barrier Even though this limitations are there LEPs found to be
superior to other flat panel displays li"e L)$! >E$ (field emission display) and
etc.
APPLICATIONS AND FEURE DEVELOPMENTS
Al!"#$!o%sB
Polymer light&emitting diodes (PLE$) can easily be processed into large&
area thin films using simple and ine%pensive technology. They also promise to
challenge L)$4s as the premiere display technology for wireless phones! pagers!
and P$-4s with brighter! thinner! lighter! and faster features than the current
display.
C+
P)OTO#O(T"ICS
)$T5s PLE$ technology can be used in reverse! to convert light into
electricity. $evices which convert light into electricity are called photovoltaic
(P.) devices! and are at the heart of solar cells and light detectors. )$T has an
active program to develop efficient solar cells and light detectors using its
polymer semiconductor "now&how and e%perience! and has filed several patents
in the area.
$igital cloc"s powered by )$T4s polymer solar cells.
PO(* ($ T#
Philips will demonstrate its first +C&inch PolyLE$ T. prototype based on
polymer /LE$ (organic light&emitting diode) technology Ta"ing as its
reference application the wide&screen C7&inch diagonal display with WM;-
(+CFH%9FG) resolution! Philips has produced a prototype +C&inch carve&out of
this display (resolution H9F%C=6) to demonstrate the feasibility of
manufacturing large&screen polymer /LE$ displays using high&accuracy multi&
C=
no''le! multi&head in"et printers. The e%cellent and spar"ling image (uality of
Philips4 Poly LE$ T. prototype illustrates the great potential of this new
display technology for T. applications. -ccording to current predictions! a
polymer /LE$&based T. could be a reality in the ne%t five years.
'"'* %O'I(
This award winning baby mobile uses light weight organic light emitting
diodes to reali'e images and sounds in response to gestures and speech of the
infant.
CC
%P. P("*R $ISP("*
-nother product on the mar"et ta"ing advantage of a thin form&factor! light&
emitting polymer display is the new! compact! <PC audio player! mar"eted by
;o$ot Technology. The unit employs a polymeric light&emitting diode (pLE$)
display supplied by $elta /ptoelectronics! Taiwan! which is made with green
Lumation light&emitting polymers furnished by $ow )hemical )o.! <idland!
<ich.
MORE APPLICATIONS
_<ulti or full colour cell phone displays
_>ull colour high&resolution personal digital assistants(P$-s)
_3eads&up instrumentation for cars
_Lightweight wrist watches
_3igh definition televisions.
_*oll&up daily refreshable electronic newspapers
_-utomobile light systems without bulbs
WindowsIwallIpartitions that double as computer screens
_<ilitary uniforms
FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS
3ere4s ust a few ideas which build on the versatility of light emitting materials
C6
3igh efficiency displays running on low power and economical to
manufacture will find many uses in the consumer electronics field. 1right! clear
screens filled with information and entertainment data of all sorts may ma"e our
lives easier! happier and safer.
$emands for information on the move could drive the development of
4wearable4 displays! with interactive features.
Eywith changing information )ole wool gives many brand ownerve edge
CH
The ability of PLE$s to be fabricated on fle%ible substrates opens up
fascinating possibilities for formable or even fully fle%ible displays e catching
pac"aging intent at the point of a valuable competition
F/ %OR $#(OP%NTS
O 1ecause the plastics can be made in the form of thin films or
sheets! they offer a huge range of applications. These include television
or computer screens that can be rolled up and tossed in a briefcase! and
cheap videophones.
O )lothes made of the polymer and powered by a small battery
pac" could provide their own cinema show.
O )amouflage! generating an image of its surroundings pic"ed up
by a camera would allow its wearer to blend perfectly into the
bac"ground
O - fully integrated analytical chip that contains an integrated light
source and detector could provide powerful point&of&care technology.
This would greatly e%tend the tools available to a doctor and would allow
on&the&spot (uantitative analysis! eliminating the need for patients to
ma"e repeat visits. This would bring forward the start of treatment! lower
treatment costs and free up clinician time.
CF
The future is bright for products incorporating PLE$ displays. ?ltra&light! ultra&
thin displays! with low power consumption and e%cellent readability allow
product designers a much freer rein. The environmentally conscious will warm
to the absence of to%ic substances and lower overall material re(uirements of
PLE$s! and it would not be an e%aggeration to say that all current display
applications could benefit from the introduction of PLE$ technology.
)$T sees PLE$ technology as being first applied to mobile communications!
small and low information content instrumentation! and appliance displays.
With the emergence of C; telecommunications! high (uality displays will be
critical for handheld devices. PLE$s are ideal for the small display mar"et as
they offer vibrant! full&colour displays in a compact! lightweight and fle%ible
form.

Within the ne%t few years! PLE$s are e%pected to ma"e significant inroads into
mar"ets currently dominated by the cathode ray tube and L)$ display
technologies! such as televisions and computer monitors. PLE$s are anticipated
as the technology of choice for new products including virtual reality headsetsE
a wide range of thin! technologies! such as televisions and computer monitors.
PLE$s are anticipated as the technology of choice for new products including
virtual reality headsetsE a wide range of thin! lightweight! full colour portable
computingE communications and information management productsE and
conformable or fle%ible displays
C9
CONC(USION
/rganic materials are poised as never before to trans form the world
of display technology. <aor electronic firms such as Philips and pioneer
and smaller companies such as )ambridge $isplay Technology are betting
that the future holds tremendous opportunity for low cost and surprisingly
high performance offered by organic electronic and opto electronic devices.
?sing organic light emitting diodes! organic full colour displays may
eventually replace L)$s in laptop and even des"top computers. Such
displays can be deposited on fle%ible plastic coils! eliminating fragile and
heavy glass substrate used in L)$s and can emit light without the
directionality inherent in L)$ viewing with efficiencies higher than that can
be obtained with incandescent light bulbs.
/rganic electronics are already entering commercial world. <ulticolor
automobile stereo displays are now available from Pioneer )orp.! of To"yo
-nd *oyal Philips Electronics! -msterdam is gearing up to produce PLE$
bac"lights to be used in L)$s and organic #)s.
The first products using organic displays are already in the mar"et.
-nd while it is always difficult to predict when and what future products will
be introduced! many manufactures are wor"ing to introduce cell phoned and
personal digital assistants with organic displays within the ne%t few years.
The ultimate goal of using high efficiency! phosphorescent
>le%ible organic displays in laptop computers and even for home
video applications may be no more than a few years in to the future. The
portable and light weight organic displays will soon cover our walls
replacing the bul"y and power hungry cathode ray tubes.
CG
RFRNC
WE1 S#TES
www.cdtltd.co.u"
www.research.philips.com
www.covion.com
www.lep&light.com

:/?*0-LS

Electronics for you -pril =77=(pgs! 87&8C)
Electronics for you :une =77C (88&+7=)
#EE spectrum :une =77C (=F&=8
3indu(newspaper) :uly C+ =77C (+F)
C8

Seminar Report Light Emitting Polymer

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