Graphene and mobile ions: the key to all-plastic, solution-processed light-emitting devices.
The emerging field of "organic" or "plastic" electronics has brought low-voltage, ultrathin, and energy-efficient lighting and displays to market as organic light-emitting diode (OLED) televisions and displays in cameras and mobile phones. Despite using carbon-based materials as the light-emitting layer, previous efficient organic electronic light-emitting devices have required at least one metal electrode. Here, we utilize chemically derived graphene for the transparent cathode in an all-plastic sandwich-structure device, similar to an OLED, called a light-emitting electrochemical cell (LEC). Using a screen-printable conducting polymer as a partially transparent anode and a micrometer-thick active layer solution-deposited from a blend of a light-emitting polymer and a polymer electrolyte, we demonstrate a light-emitting device based solely on solution-processable carbon-based materials. Our results demonstrate that low-voltage, inexpensive, and efficient light-emitting devices can be made without using metals. In other words, electronics can truly be "organic".
Department of Physics, Umeå University, SE-90187 Umeå, Sweden.
Piotr
P
Matyba
Hisato
H
Yamaguchi
Goki
G
Eda
Manish
M
Chhowalla
Ludvig
L
Edman
Nathaniel D
ND
Robinson
D002244:Carbon / Q000737:chemistry*; D004573:Electrolytes / Q000737:chemistry; D008027:Light; D010969:Plastics / Q000737:chemistry*; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry; D012996:Solutions
D004573:Electrolytes; D010969:Plastics; D011108:Polymers; D012996:Solutions; D002244:Carbon