OLED device having improved light output

• US 20070103056A1
• Filed: 11/08/2005
• Published: 05/10/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 11/08/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Original Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company
• Inventors: Cok, Ronald
• Application Number:
  US11/269,018
• Publication Number:
  US 20070103056A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 313/503
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/841 Self-supporting sealing arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/844 Encapsulations
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/854 comprising scattering means
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/351 comprising more than three subpixels, e.g. red-green-blue-white [RGBW]
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/38 comprising colour filters or colour changing media [CCM]
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/873 Encapsulations
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/877 comprising scattering means
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/878 comprising reflective means
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/879 comprising refractive means, e.g. lenses
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/8792 comprising light absorbing layers, e.g. black layers

Abstract

A full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device, comprising: an OLED having a first patterned electrode defining independently controllable light-emitting sub-pixels, and a second electrode, wherein at least one of the first or second electrodes is transparent and one or more layers of unpatterned organic material formed between the electrodes; wherein the organic material layer(s) emit broadband light that contains blue and at least one other color of light, and a color-change material that converts relatively higher frequency components of the broadband light to green light is correspondingly patterned with at least one of the sub-pixels to form a green sub-pixel, a color-change material that converts relatively higher frequency components of the broadband light to red light is correspondingly patterned with at least one other of the sub-pixels to form a red sub-pixel, and a blue color filter directly filtering emitted broadband light is correspondingly patterned with at least one additional other of the sub-pixels to form a blue sub-pixel.

Claims

1. A full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device, comprising:

an OLED having a first patterned electrode defining independently controllable light-emitting sub-pixels, and a second electrode, wherein at least one of the first or second electrodes is transparent and one or more layers of unpatterned organic material formed between the electrodes;

wherein the organic material layer(s) emit broadband light that contains blue and at least one other color of light, and a color-change material that converts relatively higher frequency components of the broadband light to green light is correspondingly patterned with at least one of the sub-pixels to form a green sub-pixel, a color-change material that converts relatively higher frequency components of the broadband light to red light is correspondingly patterned with at least one other of the sub-pixels to form a red sub-pixel, and a blue color filter directly filtering emitted broadband light is correspondingly patterned with at least one additional other of the sub-pixels to form a blue sub-pixel.

2. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 1 further comprising green color filters correspondingly patterned with the green sub-pixels and/or red color filters correspondingly patterned with the red sub-pixels.

3. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device claimed in claim 1, wherein the broadband light is substantially white.

4. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 3 further comprising white sub-pixels patterned by the first patterned electrode.

5. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 4, wherein the independently controllable sub-pixels are grouped into full-color pixels having a red, green, blue, and a white light emitter.

6. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device claimed in claim 1, wherein the organic layers include two light-emitting layers emitting different colors of light to form a broadband light that is substantially white.

7. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 1 further comprising a color-change material that converts blue light to yellow light patterned over at least one sub-pixel to form a yellow sub-pixel or a color-change material that converts blue light to cyan light patterned over at least one sub-pixel to form a cyan sub-pixel.

8. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 1, further comprising a substrate and an encapsulating cover, a light scattering layer located adjacent to the transparent electrode, the layer(s) of organic light-emitting material having a first refractive index range;

and wherein at least one of the substrate or cover comprises a transparent substrate or cover having a second refractive index and through which light from the OLED is emitted;

and further comprising a transparent low-index element having a third refractive index lower than each of the first refractive index range and second refractive index and located between the scattering layer and the transparent substrate or cover.

9. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 8 wherein the scattering layer is formed between the transparent electrode, and the color-change material or the color filters.

10. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 8 wherein the transparent low-index element is formed between the cover and the color-change material or the color filters.

11. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 8 wherein the transparent low-index element is formed between the color filters and the color-change material and the transparent electrode.

12. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 1 wherein the color-change material is a scattering layer.

13. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 1 further comprising one or more protective layers formed between the transparent electrode and the scattering layer.

14. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 1 further wherein the other of the first or second electrodes is reflective.

15. The full-color organic light-emitting diode (OLED) device of claim 18 wherein the reflective electrode comprises a transparent electrode and a reflective layer and wherein the scattering layer is formed between the transparent electrode and the reflective layer.