Enhancing light out-coupling of organic light-emitting devices using indium tin oxide-free low-index transparent electrodes

Abstract

With its increasing and sufficient conductivity, the conducting polymer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) has been capable of replacing the widely used but less cost-effective indium tin oxides (ITOs) as alternative transparent electrodes for organic light-emitting devices (OLEDs). Intriguingly, PEDOT:PSS also possesses an optical refractive index significantly lower than those of ITO and typical organic layers in OLEDs and well matching those of typical OLED substrates. Optical simulation reveals that by replacing ITO with such a low-index transparent electrode, the guided modes trapped within the organic/ITO layers in conventional OLEDs can be substantially suppressed, leading to more light coupled into the substrate than the conventional ITO device. By applying light out-coupling structures onto outer surfaces of substrates to effectively extract radiation into substrates, OLEDs using such low-index transparent electrodes achieve enhanced optical out-coupling and external quantum efficiencies in comparison with conventional OLEDs using ITO.