Organic EL element

• US 8,999,832 B2
• Filed: 01/11/2013
• Issued: 04/07/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 08/06/2010
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: JOLED Inc.
• Original Assignee: Panasonic Corporation (Panasonic Holdings Corporation)
• Inventors: Nishiyama, Seiji, Ohuchi, Satoru, Komatsu, Takahiro, Sakanoue, Kei, Tsukamoto, Yoshiaki, Fujimura, Shinya
• Primary Examiner(s): Parker, Kenneth
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fan, Bo
• Application Number:
  US13/739,363
• Publication Number:
  US 20130126841A1
• Time in Patent Office: 816 Days
• Field of Search: 257/88, 257/40, 257/369, 257/296, 438/29, 438/592, 313/504, 313/506
• US Class Current: 438/592
• CPC Class Codes: H05B 33/22 characterised by the chemical or physical composition or the arrangement of auxiliary dielectric or reflective layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 2102/331 Nanoparticles used in non-emissive layers, e.g. in packaging layer
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/17 Carrier injection layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/813 characterised by their shape
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/818 Reflective anodes, e.g. ITO combined with thick metallic layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 71/00 Manufacture or treatment specially adapted for the organic devices covered by this subclass

Abstract

An organic electroluminescent (EL) element comprises: an anode; a cathode; a functional layer disposed between the anode and the cathode, and including a light-emitting layer containing an organic material; a hole injection layer disposed between the anode and the functional layer; and a bank that defines an area in which the light-emitting layer is to be formed, wherein the hole injection layer includes tungsten oxide and includes an occupied energy level that is approximately 1.8 electron volts to approximately 3.6 electron volts lower than a lowest energy level of a valence band of the hole injection layer in terms of a binding energy, the hole injection layer has a recess in an upper surface of the area defined by the bank, and an upper peripheral edge of the recess is covered with a part of the bank.

Claims

1. An organic electroluminescent (EL) element, comprising:

an anode;

a cathode;

a functional layer disposed between the anode and the cathode, and including a light-emitting layer containing an organic material;

a hole injection layer disposed between the anode and the functional layer; and

a bank that defines an area in which the light-emitting layer is to be formed, wherein

the hole injection layer includes tungsten oxide and includes an occupied energy level that is approximately 1.8 electron volts to approximately 3.6 electron volts lower than a lowest energy level of a valence band of the hole injection layer in terms of a binding energy,

the hole injection layer has a recess in an upper surface of the area defined by the bank, and

an upper peripheral edge of the recess is covered with a part of the bank,

one of an ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy and an X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy of the hole injection layer, using a He I line as a light source and a normal line direction of a surface of the substrate as an electron emission angle, exhibits an upward protrusion that is 1.8 electron volts to 3.6 electron volts lower than a lowest energy level of a valence band of the hole injection layer in terms of binding energy, the upward protrusion corresponding to the occupied energy level of the hole injection layer.

2. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the occupied energy level at an interface between the hole injection layer and the functional layer is approximately equal to an energy level of a highest occupied molecular orbital of the functional layer in terms of the binding energy.

3. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

a gap between the occupied energy level at an interface between the hole injection layer and the functional layer and an energy level of a highest occupied molecular orbital of the functional layer is at most approximately 0.3 electron volts in terms of the binding energy.

4. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy spectrum of the hole injection layer exhibits the upward protrusion that is approximately 1.8 electron volts to approximately 3.6 electron volts lower than the lowest energy level of the valence band in terms of the binding energy.

5. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy spectrum of the hole injection layer exhibits the upward protrusion that is approximately 1.8 electron volts to approximately 3.6 electron volts lower than the lowest energy level of the valence band in terms of the binding energy.

6. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

a differential spectrum obtained by differentiating an ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy spectrum of the hole injection layer has a shape that is expressed by a non-exponential function throughout a range between approximately 2.0 electron volts and approximately 3.2 electron volts lower than the lowest energy level of the valence band in terms of the binding energy.

7. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the functional layer comprises an amine-containing material.

8. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the functional layer includes at least one of a hole transfer layer that transfers the holes, and a buffer layer that one of adjusts optical characteristics of the organic light-emitting element and blocks electrons.

9. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the occupied energy level is approximately 2.0 electron volts to 3.2 electron volts lower than the lowest energy level of the valence band in terms of the binding energy.

10. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the part of the bank reaches a bottom of the recess, and a side surface of the bank slopes upward from the bottom of the recess to a top of the bank.

11. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the part of the bank is out of contact with a bottom of the recess.

12. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the hole injection layer extends laterally along a bottom surface of the bank.

13. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the upper peripheral edge of the recess comprises a convex portion composed of (i) a part of the upper surface of the hole injection layer in which the recess is not formed and (ii) the inner side surface of the recess.

14. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein

the bank is liquid-repellent and the hole injection layer is liquid-philic.

15. A display device comprising the organic EL element of claim 1.

19. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein the upper peripheral edge of the recess comprises at least a portion of an inner side surface of the recess.

20. The organic EL element of claim 1, wherein the recess extends under a bottom surface of the bank.

16. A manufacturing method for an organic EL element, comprising:

preparing an anode;

forming a tungsten oxide layer above the anode by introducing a gas comprising an argon gas and an oxygen gas to a chamber of a sputtering device, a total pressure of the gas in the chamber being greater than approximately 2.7 pascals and at most equal to approximately 7.0 pascals, a partial pressure ratio of the oxygen gas with respect to the total pressure of the gas in the chamber being at least approximately 50% and at most approximately 70%, and an input power density per unit surface area of a sputtering target being at least approximately 1 W/cm² and at most approximately 2.8 W/cm²;

forming a bank material layer containing material constituting a bank above the tungsten oxide layer;

forming a recess by removing a portion of the bank material layer so that the tungsten oxide layer is partially exposed and an upper surface of the tungsten oxide layer in the recess is closer to the anode than an upper peripheral edge of the recess, the recess having an inner bottom surface and an inner side surface that is continuous with the inner bottom surface;

heat-treating a remaining portion of the bank material layer, the remaining portion of the bank material layer being made fluid so that the bank material layer extends to cover the upper peripheral edge of the recess,

forming functional layers including a light-emitting layer above an exposed surface of the tungsten oxide layer after the heat treatment; and

forming a cathode above the functional layer.

17. The manufacturing method of claim 16, wherein

an ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy spectrum of the tungsten oxide layer exhibits an upward protrusion that is approximately 1.8 electron volts to approximately 3.6 electron volts lower than a lowest energy level of a valence band of the tungsten oxide layer in terms of a binding energy.

18. The manufacturing method of claim 16, wherein

a differential spectrum obtained by differentiating an ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy spectrum of the tungsten oxide layer has a shape that is expressed by a non-exponential function throughout a range between approximately 2.0 electron volts and approximately 3.2 electron volts lower than the lowest energy level of the valence band in terms of the binding energy.