Organic electronic device and electric field-induced carrier generation layer

• US 9,356,249 B2
• Filed: 09/30/2014
• Issued: 05/31/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: HannStar Display Corporation
• Original Assignee: Industrial Technology Research Institute
• Inventors: Chang, Yi-Ming, Lai, Chih-Ming, Chen, Chen-Kun
• Primary Examiner(s): Islam, Mohammad
• Assistant Examiner(s): SYLVIA, CHRISTINA A
• Application Number:
  US14/501,029
• Publication Number:
  US 20160093822A1
• Time in Patent Office: 609 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 2102/00 Constructional details relating to the organic devices covered by this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 30/865 Intermediate layers comprising a mixture of materials of the adjoining active layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/11 characterised by the electroluminescent [EL] layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/131 with spacer layers between the electroluminescent layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/15 Hole transporting layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/16 Electron transporting layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/17 Carrier injection layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/171 Electron injection layers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 85/6572 comprising only nitrogen in the heteroaromatic polycondensed ring system, e.g. phenanthroline or carbazole

Abstract

An electric field-induced carrier generation layer including a p-type material and an n-type material is provided. The p-type material and the n-type material are alternately distributed in at least one direction different from a thickness direction of the electric field-induced carrier generation layer. An organic electronic device is also provided.

Claims

1. An organic electronic device comprising:

a first electrode;

a second electrode;

a plurality of organic light-emitting units disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode; and

an electric field-induced carrier generation layer disposed between two adjacent organic light-emitting units and comprising a p-type material and an n-type material alternately distributed in at least one direction different from a direction from the first electrode to the second electrode and different from a direction from the second electrode to the first electrode, wherein a weight ratio of the at least one part of the p-type material to the at least one part of the n-type material ranges from 0.05 to 99.

2. The organic electronic device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of p-n junctions are arranged along the at least one direction in which the p-type material and the n-type material are alternately distributed.

3. The organic electronic device according to claim 1, wherein at least one part of the p-type material and at least one part of the n-type material are mixed randomly in three-dimensional directions.

4. The organic electronic device according to claim 1, wherein at least one part of the p-type material and at least one part of the n-type material are mixed in three-dimensional directions, and a proportion of the at least one part of the p-type material to the at least one part of the n-type material gradually increases along a direction from the first electrode to the second electrode.

5. The organic electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the electric field-induced carrier generation layer comprises:

an n-type material layer disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode and comprising a part of the n-type material;

a p-type material layer disposed between the n-type material layer and the second electrode and comprising a part of the p-type material; and

a p-type and n-type hybrid layer comprising another part of the n-type material and another part of the p-type material alternately arranged along at least one direction perpendicular to the direction from the first electrode to the second electrode.

6. The organic electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the electric field-induced carrier generation layer comprises:

an n-type material layer disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode and comprising a part of the n-type material;

a p-type material layer disposed between the n-type material layer and the second electrode and comprising a part of the p-type material; and

a p-type and n-type hybrid layer comprising another part of the n-type material and another part of the p-type material randomly distributed in three-dimensional space.

7. The organic electronic device according to claim 1, wherein each of the organic light-emitting units comprises a plurality of organic semiconductor layers.

8. The organic electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the p-type material comprises a hole transport material mixed with an electron accepting material, and the n-type material comprises an electron transport material mixed with an alkali metal, an alkaline earth metal, an alkali metal compound, an alkaline earth metal compound, or a combination thereof.

9. The organic electronic device according to claim 8, wherein the electron accepting material comprises HATCN, MoO₃, V₂O₅, WO₃, or a combination thereof.

10. The organic electronic device according to claim 8, wherein the electron transport material is mixed with Be, Mg, Ca, Li, LiF, 8-hydroxy-quinolinato lithium, Cs₂CO₃, or a combination thereof.

11. The organic electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the p-type material is an electron accepting material, and the n-type material is an electron donor material.

12. The organic electronic device according to claim 1, wherein the electric field-induced carrier generation layer does substantially not absorb light emitted from the organic light-emitting units to generate charge carriers, but the electric field-induced carrier generation layer generates charge carriers due to a voltage difference between the first electrode and the second electrode.

13. An electric field-induced carrier generation layer comprising:

a p-type material; and

an n-type material, the p-type material and the n-type material alternately distributed in at least one direction different from a thickness direction of the electric field-induced carrier generation layer, wherein a weight ratio of the at least one part of the p-type material to the at least one part of the n-type material ranges from 0.05 to 99.

14. The electric field-induced carrier generation layer according to claim 13, wherein a plurality of p-n junctions are arranged along the at least one direction in which the p-type material and the n-type material are alternately distributed.

15. The electric field-induced carrier generation layer according to claim 13, wherein at least one part of the p-type material and at least one part of the n-type material are mixed randomly in three-dimensional directions.

16. The electric field-induced carrier generation layer according to claim 13, wherein at least one part of the p-type material and at least one part of the n-type material are mixed in three-dimensional directions, and a proportion of the at least one part of the p-type material to the at least one part of the n-type material gradually increases along the thickness direction.

17. The electric field-induced carrier generation layer according to claim 13 comprising:

an n-type material layer disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode and comprising a part of the n-type material;

a p-type material layer disposed between the n-type material layer and the second electrode and comprising a part of the p-type material; and

a p-type and n-type hybrid layer comprising another part of the n-type material and another part of the p-type material alternately arranged along at least one direction perpendicular to the thickness direction.

18. The electric field-induced carrier generation layer according to claim 13, wherein the electric field-induced carrier generation layer comprises:

an n-type material layer disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode and comprising a part of the n-type material;

a p-type material layer disposed between the n-type material layer and the second electrode and comprising a part of the p-type material; and

a p-type and n-type hybrid layer comprising another part of the n-type material and another part of the p-type material randomly distributed in three-dimensional space.

19. The electric field-induced carrier generation layer according to claim 13, wherein the p-type material comprises a hole transport material mixed with an electron accepting material, and the n-type material comprises an electron transport material mixed with an alkali metal, an alkaline earth metal, an alkali metal compound, an alkaline earth metal compound, or a combination thereof.

20. The electric field-induced carrier generation layer according to claim 19, wherein the electron accepting material comprises HATCN, MoO₃, V₂O₅, WO₃, or a combination thereof.

21. The electric field-induced carrier generation layer according to claim 19, wherein the electron transport material is mixed with Be, Mg, Ca, Li, LiF, 8-hydroxy-quinolinato lithium, Cs₂CO₃, or a combination thereof.

22. The electric field-induced carrier generation layer according to claim 13, wherein the p-type material is an electron accepting material, and the n-type material is an electron donor material.

23. The electric field-induced carrier generation layer according to claim 13, wherein the electric field-induced carrier generation layer does substantially not absorb visible light to generate charge carriers, but the electric field-induced carrier generation layer generates charge carriers due to a voltage difference between two opposite surfaces of the electric field-induced carrier generation layer.