Deposition-induced photoluminescence quenching of tris-(8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminum

Abstract

Ca, Ag, and Ge atoms quench the photoluminescence (PL) of an organic thin film, tris-(8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminum (Alq3), a model organic material for organic light emitting diodes. The observed PL quenching behavior was similar for all three elements, independent of their metallic nature. Due to strong interactions at the Ca/Alq3 interface, the quenching was much less effective at submonolayer coverages. We have also observed that proper oxidation of Ca at the Ca/Alq3 interface can significantly recover the quenched luminescence of Alq3.