The relationship between the exciton binding energies of several pure organic dyes and their chemical structures is explored using density functional theory calculations in order to optimize the molecular design in terms of the light‐to‐electric energy‐conversion efficiency in dye‐sensitized solar cell devices. Comparing calculations with measurements reveals that the exciton binding energy and quantum yield are inversely correlated, implying that dyes with lower exciton binding energy produce electric current from the absorbed photons more efficiently. When a strong electron‐accepting moiety is inserted in the middle of the dye framework, the light‐to‐electric energy‐conversion behavior significantly deteriorates. As verified by electronic‐structure calculations, this is likely due to electron localization near the electron‐deficient group. The combined computational and experimental design approach provides insight into the functioning of organic photosensitizing dyes for solar‐cell applications. This is exemplified by the development of a novel, all‐organic dye (EB‐01) exhibiting a power conversion efficiency of over 9%.

Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) have great potential for applications such as flat panel displays and solid-state lighting. [1][2][3][4][5][6] Many green-and red-light-emitting organic materials have been developed for full-color displays but highly efficient and stable blue-light-emitting organic materials are still rare. [7][8][9][10] Due to the large band-gap of blue-light emitters, it is difficult to inject holes from the anode as well as electrons from the cathode in blue-light OLEDs. Promising candidates for blue-light-emitting materials include fluorene-based polymers and oligomers, due to their high photoluminescent quantum yield (PLQY), good thermal stability, and excellent solubility. [11][12][13] In this communication, we report a series of new blue-light-emitting materials consisting of oligofluorenyl blocks and electron-donating/electron-withdrawing groups, which facilitate the injection and transport of both holes and electrons. The device performance of undoped and doped devices indicates that they are very promising for OLEDs, with essential elements of high efficiency, good stability, and color purity for pure-blue emission.The target blue-light-emitting compounds were synthesized through three key steps (Scheme 1). First, 4-iodoaniline was coupled with carbazole through an Ullmann coupling reaction. In our first attempt, where N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc) was used as solvent, the reaction solution was heated at 160 8C for 24 h, and 76% yield of compound A was achieved. In our second attempt with diphenyl ether as solvent, the temperature was raised to 190 8C and the reaction yielded 92% of desired product. Compound A was then coupled with dibromo-oligofluorene (B1-B3), catalyzed by Pd(OAc) 2 , to afford compounds C1 to C3, which were eventually end-capped with cyanophenyl groups through a Suzuki coupling reaction. The three coupling reactions produced an overall yield of 55%, 37%, and 33% for D1, D2, and D3, respectively.The physical properties of the compounds are summarized in Table 1. All three compounds show high photoluminescent quantum yields, ranging from 59% to 64% in chloroform solution. With the number of fluorene units increasing from 1 to 3, the optical properties change remarkably. The optical bandgaps determined from the l 0-0 absorption-band edge are 2.78, 2.81, and 2.89 eV for D1, D2 and D3, respectively. The absorption maximum in the UV-vis spectrum of D3 in chloroform solution is blue-shifted by 9 nm, and the peak of photoluminescence (PL) spectrum of the thin film is largely blue-shifted by 33 nm compared with D1, as shown in Figure 1a. The OLED device performances also depend on the number of fluorene units, which will be described below.The preparation of the electroluminescent devices is briefly described as follows (see Experimental section): poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) and the light-emitting layer were spin-coated from solutions onto indium tin oxide (ITO) surfaces sequentially. 1,3,5-tris(phenyl-2-benzimidazolyl)benzene (TPBI...

Based on the results of first‐principles calculations of the electronic properties of blue light‐emitting materials, the molecular structures of oligofluorenes are optimized by incorporating electron‐withdrawing groups into the molecules to balance hole and electron injection and transport for organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs). The result is a remarkable improvement in the maximum external quantum efficiency (EQE) of the undoped device from 2.0% to 4.99%. Further optimization of the device configurations and processing procedures, e.g., by changing the thickness of the emitting layer and through thermal annealing treatments, leads to a very high maximum EQE of 7.40% for the undoped sky‐blue device. Finally, by doping the emitter in a suitable host material, 4,4’‐bis(carbazol‐9‐yl)biphenyl (CBP), at the optimal concentration of 6%, pure blue emission with extremely high maximum EQE of 9.40% and Commission Internationale de l’Eclairage (CIE) coordinates of (0.147, 0.139) is achieved.

The structure and electronic properties of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) cages functionalized with different organic groups have been studied using density functional theory and time-dependent density functional theory calculations. Accordingly, the POSS-T8 cage is quite rigid upon functionalization and thus provides a means for spatially separating conjugated organic fragments, which is useful for the realization of novel organic molecular architectures for light-emitting diodes. Moreover, electronic properties can be tuned through the choice of functional groups and their positioning on or within the POSS cage. Attaching an electron-donating group, such as 4-carbazolephenyl, to the silicon atom at the corner of the cage raises the HOMO level, while attaching an electron-withdrawing group, such as 4-cyanophenyl, or inserting an inert molecule, such as N(2), into the POSS cage lowers the LUMO level. Frontier orbital analysis indicates that the POSS cage is partially conjugated and serves a role as electron acceptor. Carrier transport rates are discussed in the frame of Marcus' electron hopping theory. On the basis of the calculated reorganization energies, these POSS compounds can be used as carrier transporting or blocking materials, depending on the functionalization. Exciton binding energies strongly depend on the spatial arrangement of frontier orbitals rather than on molecular sizes.