ITO/metal/ITO anode for efficient transparent white organic light-emitting diodes

Abstract

We report on the characteristics of enhanced and balanced white-light emission of transparent organic light emitting diodes (TOLEDs) by introducing anode that has a stack structure of ITO/metal/ITO (IMI). We have investigated an anode that has a stack structure of IMI. IMI anodes are typically composed of a thin Ag layer (∼15 nm) sandwiched between two ITO layers (∼50 nm). By inserting an Ag layer it was possible to achieve sheet resistance lower than 3 Ω/sq. and transmittance of 86% at a wavelength of 550 nm. The Ag insert can act as a reflective component. With its counterpart, a transparent cathode made of a thin Ag layer (∼15 nm), micro-cavities (MC) can be effectively induced in the OLED, leading to improved performance. Using an IMI anode, it was possible to significantly increase the current efficiencies. The current efficiencies of the top and the bottom of the IMI TOLED increased to 23.0 and 15.6 cd/A, respectively, while those of the white TOLED with the ITO anode were 20.7 and 5.1 cd/A, respectively. A 30% enhancement in the overall current efficiency was achieved by taking advantage of the MC effect and the low sheet resistance.