Exceptionally high brightness and long lifetime of efficient blue OLEDs for programmable active-matrix display

Abstract Blue phosphorescent OLEDs (Ph-OLEDs) have long faced critical challenges in efficiency, stability and brightness, which are crucial for advanced display. Herein, we introduce two novel Ir(III) emitters featuring a 3,6-di(tert-butyl)-9H-carbazolyl (tBuCz) substituted tridentate carbene pince...

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Main Authors: Chengcheng Wu, Kai-Ning Tong, Kefei Shi, Wei He, Manli Huang, Jie Yan, Siqi Li, Zhaoyun Jin, Xin Wang, Sinyeong Jung, Jingrui Ma, Yixi Zhuang, Rong-Jun Xie, Cunjiang Yu, Hong Meng, Xiao Wei Sun, Chuluo Yang, Yun Chi, Feiyu Kang, Guodan Wei
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Publishing Group 2025-04-01
Series:Light: Science & Applications
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-025-01817-x
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author Chengcheng Wu
Kai-Ning Tong
Kefei Shi
Wei He
Manli Huang
Jie Yan
Siqi Li
Zhaoyun Jin
Xin Wang
Sinyeong Jung
Jingrui Ma
Yixi Zhuang
Rong-Jun Xie
Cunjiang Yu
Hong Meng
Xiao Wei Sun
Chuluo Yang
Yun Chi
Feiyu Kang
Guodan Wei
author_facet Chengcheng Wu
Kai-Ning Tong
Kefei Shi
Wei He
Manli Huang
Jie Yan
Siqi Li
Zhaoyun Jin
Xin Wang
Sinyeong Jung
Jingrui Ma
Yixi Zhuang
Rong-Jun Xie
Cunjiang Yu
Hong Meng
Xiao Wei Sun
Chuluo Yang
Yun Chi
Feiyu Kang
Guodan Wei
author_sort Chengcheng Wu
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Blue phosphorescent OLEDs (Ph-OLEDs) have long faced critical challenges in efficiency, stability and brightness, which are crucial for advanced display. Herein, we introduce two novel Ir(III) emitters featuring a 3,6-di(tert-butyl)-9H-carbazolyl (tBuCz) substituted tridentate carbene pincer ligand, significantly improving efficiency and stability. The tBuCz- m -CF3 and tBuCz- p -CF3 complexes are designed to enhance steric encumbrance and minimize exciton accumulation. These innovations lead to exceptional photoluminescence quantum yields (PLQY) of 98% and an impressive decay rate constant of 7.97 × 105 s−1 in doped thin films. The Ph-OLEDs emit blue light with a peak wavelength of 485 nm and CIE coordinates of (0.175, 0.446), exhibiting a peak external quantum efficiencies (EQE) of 31.62% and brightness up to 214,255 cd m−2. Notably, they shown minimal efficiency roll-off, retaining an EQE of 27.76% at 10,000 cd m−2, and 20.58% at 100,000 cd m−2. These consistent performances across various brightness levels represent a significant milestone for blue Ph-OLED technology. The devices also exhibit impressive stability, with an operational lifetime (LT50, the time taken for luminance to decrease by 50%) reaching 1237 h at 1000 cd m−2, setting new benchmarks for blue Ph-OLEDs. To enhance the color purity, hyper-OLEDs were developed with a full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 20 nm and the CIEy of 0.233, achieving an EQEm of 29.78% and LT50 of 318 h at 1000 cd m−2. We also fabricated the active-matrix (AM) blue Hyper-OLEDs with 400 pixels per inch to demonstrate their application in AM displays.
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spelling doaj-art-5be4137152e44e1cb05810011aceeecc2025-08-20T03:09:20ZengNature Publishing GroupLight: Science & Applications2047-75382025-04-0114111410.1038/s41377-025-01817-xExceptionally high brightness and long lifetime of efficient blue OLEDs for programmable active-matrix displayChengcheng Wu0Kai-Ning Tong1Kefei Shi2Wei He3Manli Huang4Jie Yan5Siqi Li6Zhaoyun Jin7Xin Wang8Sinyeong Jung9Jingrui Ma10Yixi Zhuang11Rong-Jun Xie12Cunjiang Yu13Hong Meng14Xiao Wei Sun15Chuluo Yang16Yun Chi17Feiyu Kang18Guodan Wei19Institute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (SIGS), Tsinghua UniversityInstitute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (SIGS), Tsinghua UniversityInstitute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (SIGS), Tsinghua UniversityInstitute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (SIGS), Tsinghua UniversityShenzhen Key Laboratory of Polymer Science and Technology, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Shenzhen UniversityDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Department of Chemistry, Center of Super-Diamond and Advanced Films (COSDAF), City University of Hong KongInstitute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (SIGS), Tsinghua UniversityInstitute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (SIGS), Tsinghua UniversityInstitute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (SIGS), Tsinghua UniversityInstitute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (SIGS), Tsinghua UniversityInstitute of Nanoscience and Applications, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Southern University of Science and TechnologyCollege of Materials and Fujian Key Laboratory of Surface andInterface Engineering for High Performance Materials, Xiamen UniversityCollege of Materials and Fujian Key Laboratory of Surface andInterface Engineering for High Performance Materials, Xiamen UniversityDepartment of Biomedical Engineering, Pennsylvania State UniversitySchool of Advanced Materials, Peking University Shenzhen Graduated School, Peking UniversityInstitute of Nanoscience and Applications, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Southern University of Science and TechnologyShenzhen Key Laboratory of Polymer Science and Technology, College of Materials Science and Engineering, Shenzhen UniversityDepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Department of Chemistry, Center of Super-Diamond and Advanced Films (COSDAF), City University of Hong KongInstitute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (SIGS), Tsinghua UniversityInstitute of Materials Research, Tsinghua Shenzhen International Graduate School (SIGS), Tsinghua UniversityAbstract Blue phosphorescent OLEDs (Ph-OLEDs) have long faced critical challenges in efficiency, stability and brightness, which are crucial for advanced display. Herein, we introduce two novel Ir(III) emitters featuring a 3,6-di(tert-butyl)-9H-carbazolyl (tBuCz) substituted tridentate carbene pincer ligand, significantly improving efficiency and stability. The tBuCz- m -CF3 and tBuCz- p -CF3 complexes are designed to enhance steric encumbrance and minimize exciton accumulation. These innovations lead to exceptional photoluminescence quantum yields (PLQY) of 98% and an impressive decay rate constant of 7.97 × 105 s−1 in doped thin films. The Ph-OLEDs emit blue light with a peak wavelength of 485 nm and CIE coordinates of (0.175, 0.446), exhibiting a peak external quantum efficiencies (EQE) of 31.62% and brightness up to 214,255 cd m−2. Notably, they shown minimal efficiency roll-off, retaining an EQE of 27.76% at 10,000 cd m−2, and 20.58% at 100,000 cd m−2. These consistent performances across various brightness levels represent a significant milestone for blue Ph-OLED technology. The devices also exhibit impressive stability, with an operational lifetime (LT50, the time taken for luminance to decrease by 50%) reaching 1237 h at 1000 cd m−2, setting new benchmarks for blue Ph-OLEDs. To enhance the color purity, hyper-OLEDs were developed with a full width at half maximum (FWHM) of 20 nm and the CIEy of 0.233, achieving an EQEm of 29.78% and LT50 of 318 h at 1000 cd m−2. We also fabricated the active-matrix (AM) blue Hyper-OLEDs with 400 pixels per inch to demonstrate their application in AM displays.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-025-01817-x
spellingShingle Chengcheng Wu
Kai-Ning Tong
Kefei Shi
Wei He
Manli Huang
Jie Yan
Siqi Li
Zhaoyun Jin
Xin Wang
Sinyeong Jung
Jingrui Ma
Yixi Zhuang
Rong-Jun Xie
Cunjiang Yu
Hong Meng
Xiao Wei Sun
Chuluo Yang
Yun Chi
Feiyu Kang
Guodan Wei
Exceptionally high brightness and long lifetime of efficient blue OLEDs for programmable active-matrix display
Light: Science & Applications
title Exceptionally high brightness and long lifetime of efficient blue OLEDs for programmable active-matrix display
title_full Exceptionally high brightness and long lifetime of efficient blue OLEDs for programmable active-matrix display
title_fullStr Exceptionally high brightness and long lifetime of efficient blue OLEDs for programmable active-matrix display
title_full_unstemmed Exceptionally high brightness and long lifetime of efficient blue OLEDs for programmable active-matrix display
title_short Exceptionally high brightness and long lifetime of efficient blue OLEDs for programmable active-matrix display
title_sort exceptionally high brightness and long lifetime of efficient blue oleds for programmable active matrix display
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-025-01817-x
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