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Ultrathin, highly flexible and stretchable PLEDs

Nature Photonics volume 7, pages 811–816 (2013)Cite this article

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Abstract

We demonstrate ultrathin (2 µm thick) red and orange polymer light-emitting diodes with unprecedented mechanical properties in terms of their flexibility and ability to be stretched. The devices have a luminance greater than 100 cd m–2, sufficient for a variety of optoelectronic applications including indoor displays. They can be operated as free-standing ultrathin films, allowing for crumpling during device operation. Furthermore, they may be applied to almost any surface whether rigid or elastomeric, and can withstand the associated mechanical deformation. They are shown to be extremely flexible, with radii of curvature under 10 µm, and stretch-compatible to 100% tensile strain. Such ultrathin light-emitting foils constitute an important step towards integration with malleable materials like textiles and artificial skin.

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Figure 1: Electrical and optical characterization of ultrathin PLEDs.
Figure 2: Demonstrations of extreme deformation attainable with ultrathin PLEDs.
Figure 3: Wrinkling and folding of PLED films during compression.

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Acknowledgements

The authors thank Pütz GmbH & Co. Folien KG for the ultrathin substrates. This work was partially funded by the ERC Advanced Investigators Grant ‘SoftMap’ and the JST–ERATO Someya Bio-Harmonized Electronics grant. The authors are grateful to the Austrian FWF for financial support through the Wittgenstein Award. N.S.S. and M.S.W. acknowledge financial support from the J-RISE (JST) Yamagata University–Johannes Kepler University collaboration. D.A.M.E. and C.U. acknowledge the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) for financial support in the framework of SPP 1355. S.A. acknowledges support from the African Network for Solar Energy (ANSOLE) for enabling her stay at LIOS under the framework of the ANEX-Program. The authors thank J. Reeder, P. Stadler and P. Denk for their contributions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physical Chemistry, Johannes Kepler University, Linz Institute for Organic Solar Cells (LIOS), Altenbergerstrasse 69, Linz, 4040, Austria

    Matthew S. White, Eric D. Głowacki, Kateryna Gutnichenko, Daniel A. M. Egbe, Markus C. Scharber & Niyazi Serdar Sariciftci

  2. The University of Tokyo, Electrical and Electronic Engineering and Information Systems, 7-3-1 Hongo, Tokyo, 113-8656, Bunkyo-ku, Japan

    Martin Kaltenbrunner, Tsuyoshi Sekitani & Takao Someya

  3. Exploratory Research for Advanced Technology (ERATO), Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), 2-11-16, Tokyo, 113-0032, Yayoi, Bukyo-ku, Japan

    Martin Kaltenbrunner, Tsuyoshi Sekitani & Takao Someya

  4. Johannes Kepler University, Soft Matter Physics, Altenbergerstrasse 69, Linz, 4040, Austria

    Martin Kaltenbrunner, Gerald Kettlgruber, Ingrid Graz & Siegfried Bauer

  5. Physics Department, Laboratory for Solid State Physics, Interfaces and Nanostructures, University of Liege, Liege, Belgium

    Safae Aazou

  6. Physics Department, Laboratory of Instrumentation, Measure and Control, Chouaïb Doukkali University, El Jadida, Morocco

    Safae Aazou

  7. MEET Battery Research Center, Institute of Physical Chemistry, University of Muenster, Correnstrasse 46, Muenster, 48149, Germany

    Christoph Ulbricht

  8. Johannes Kepler University, Institute of Polymer Product Engineering, Altenbergerstrasse 69, Linz, 4040, Austria

    Matei C. Miron & Zoltan Major

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  1. Matthew S. White
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Contributions

D.A.M.E. and C.U. conceived and synthesized the light-emitting polymer. M.S.W., M.K., E.D.G., K.G. and S.A. fabricated and characterized devices. G.K., K.G. and I.G. processed ultrathin substrates and assisted with device demonstrations. M.S.W., M.K. and S.B. wrote the manuscript and prepared figures, with contributions from all authors. M.C.M. and Z.M. performed the quantitative mechanical analysis. Ta.S., Ts.S., M.C.S., S.B. and N.S.S. supervised the project and advised on device optimization.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Matthew S. White.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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White, M., Kaltenbrunner, M., Głowacki, E. et al. Ultrathin, highly flexible and stretchable PLEDs. Nature Photon 7, 811–816 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/nphoton.2013.188

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