A recently developed chemical composition holds the promise of making OLED panels both more environmentally friendly and cost-effective by eliminating the need for expensive rare earth materials traditionally used in top-tier OLED TVs. This breakthrough stems from a novel manganese (Mn) complex created by researchers at Dongguk University in South Korea, and their findings were published in the Chemical Engineering Journal in October. The innovation focuses on revolutionizing the fabrication process of OLED substrates.
Typically, OLED displays utilize a solution-process method, which relies on costly rare earth materials to ensure stability and efficiency within their internal complexes. Challenges such as solvent resistivity, as indicated in a paper from the National Institutes of Health, highlight the limitations and cost inefficiencies of the conventional solution process in OLED fabrication.
The Dongguk University research team, led by Assistant Professor Vijaya Gopalan Sree, adopted an alternative approach that capitalizes on more abundant and cost-effective materials compared to traditional manufacturing processes. The key to their success lies in the development of a non-toxic zero-dimensional Mn(II) bromide complex (MnBz) through a unique process.
In this groundbreaking method, MnBz is synthesized by combining manganese bromide (MnBr2) and benzyltriphenylphosphonium (Ph3BzPBr) without the use of solvents. The resulting solution is then evaporated over several days, producing single MnBz crystals. These crystals demonstrated a high quantum yield and emitted bright green light. Utilizing MnBz crystals, Sree and the team created a warm-white light-emitting device and a green phosphorescent OLED device, both exhibiting a remarkable current efficiency of 56.84 cd A-1 and a record-breaking quantum efficiency of 11.42%. This surpasses the efficiency of current-generation OLEDs and significantly reduces the ecological impact of OLED manufacturing.
Furthermore, the newly developed warm-white light-emitting device based on this complex achieved a color rendering index (CRI) of 78, a commendable result compared to conventional OLEDs that typically average around 90 but decrease over time.
Apart from the potential to decrease the average price of OLED panels, the MnBz fabrication process holds the promise of creating energy-efficient devices. The high brightness specifications of MnBz-based emitters could pave the way for more eco-friendly lighting systems and sustainable consumer electronics in the long run.
This breakthrough has implications for QD-OLED and LG OLED TVs, both of which rely on the solution-process manufacturing technique. By transitioning to MnBz crystals, there is not only the prospect of a more environmentally conscious future for various TV panels and consumer electronics across different brands but also the potential for making these devices more accessible to the average consumer. For those eager to experience cutting-edge OLED technology, consider exploring the LG C3 OLED, recognized as one of the best TVs of 2023.