Organic electroluminescent devices are light-emitting diodes in which the active materials consist entirely of organic materials. Here, the fabrication of a white light-emitting organic electroluminescent device made from vacuum-deposited organic thin films is reported. In this device, three emitter layers with different carrier transport properties, each emitting blue, green, or red light, are used to generate white light. Bright white light, over 2000 candelas per square meter, nearly as bright as a fluorescent lamp, was successfully obtained at low drive voltages such as 15 to 16 volts. The applications of such a device include paper-thin light sources, which are particularly useful for places that require lightweight illumination devices, such as in aircraft and space shuttles. Other uses are a backlight for liquid crystal display as well as full color displays, achieved by combining the emitters with micropatterned color filters.

White light-emitting electroluminescent devices were fabricated using poly(N-vinylcarbazole) (PVK) as a hole-transporting emitter layer and a double layer of 1,2,4-triazole derivative (TAZ) and tris(8-quinolinolato)aluminum(III) complex (Alq) as an electron transport layer. The PVK layer was doped with fluorescent dyes such as blue-emitting 1,1,4,4-tetraphenyl-1,3-butadiene, green-emitting coumarin 6, and orange-emitting DCM 1. A cell structure of glass substrate/indium-tin-oxide/doped PVK/TAZ/Alq/Mg:Ag was employed. White emission covering a wide range of the visible region and a high luminance of 3400 cd/m2 were obtained at a drive voltage of 14 V.

Bright single-layer white light-emitting organic electroluminescent devices were developed by using dye-dispersed poly(N-vinylcarbazole) (PVK). The active layer consists only of one polymer layer that is simply sandwiched between two electrodes, indium-tin oxide, and Mg:Ag. In order to achieve bipolarity in the single polymer emitter layer, PVK was molecularly dispersed with electron-transporting additives such as 2-(4-biphenyl)-5-(4-tert-butylphenyl)-1,3,4-oxadiazole. In addition, several fluorescent dyes, having different emission colors, were dispersed as emitting centers. By adjusting the concentration of the fluorescent dyes, white light with a maximum luminescence of 4100 cd/m2 was obtained, which is the brightest white light ever observed for organic electroluminescent devices.

Organic electroluminescent (EL) devices with a trivalent europium (Eu) complex as an emitter were fabricated. Triple-layer-type cells with a structure of glass substrate/indium-tin oxide/ triphenyldiamine derivative (TPD)/Eu complex: 1,3,4-oxadiazole derivative (PBD)/aluminum complex (Alq)/Mg:Ag exhibit bright red luminescence upon applying dc voltage. The EL spectrum consists of extremely sharp emission bands, which is a typical luminescence spectrum of the Eu complex. Luminance of 460 cd/m2 with an emission peak at 614 nm is achieved at a drive voltage of 16 V. This is the highest luminance so far obtained for the EL cells having a Eu complex as an emitter.

Electroluminescent devices were fabricated using poly(N-vinylcarbazole) (PVK) as a hole-transporting emitter layer and a double layer of 1,2,4-triazole derivative (TAZ) and tris(8-quinolinolato)aluminum(III) complex (Alq) as an electron transport layer. A cell structure of glass substrate/indium-tin-oxide/PVK/TAZ/Alq/Mg:Ag was employed. In this cell structure, carrier injection from the electrodes to the PVK layer and concomitant electroluminescence from PVK were observed. Blue emission peaking at 410 nm and a luminance of 700 cd/m2 were achieved at a drive voltage of 14 V.

Conformational properties of cylindrical rod brushes consisting of a flexible polystyrene main chain and poly(n-hexyl isocyanate) (PHIC) rod side chains have thoroughly been studied by static light and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) in tetrahydrofuran (THF) at 25 °C. These rod brushes were prepared by radical homopolymerization of 4-vinylbenzyloxy-ended PHIC macromonomers (1) (VB-HIC-N s , where N s is the weight-averaged degree of polymerization of HIC and in a range from 21 to 80) in n-hexane at 60 °C. The mean-square cross-sectional radius of gyration (〈R c 2 〉 0 ) of the brush at an infinite dilution is determined by SAXS measurement and rationalized as a function of N s . The experimental value of 〈R c 2 〉 0 gradually increases with N s but above N s higher than 20 increases to follow the scaling law of 〈R c 2 〉 0 ∝ N s 0.87 . The experimental N s dependence of 〈R c 2 〉 0 is compared to that from the wormlike comb model whose main and side chains have different stiffness parameters. The molecular weight dependence of z-averaged mean-square radius of gyration (〈R g 2 〉 z ) of the brush is determined and analyzed in terms of the wormlike cylinder model taking into account the end effects. The parameters characteristic of the rod brush in THF solution, such as the main chain stiffness parameter (λ M -1 ), the molecular weight per unit contour length (M L ), and the excluded-volume strength (B), are determined and rationalized as a function of the contour length of the side rod. The polystyrene main chain stiffness of the rod brush remarkably increases by the densely located rod side chains to follow the scaling law of λ M -1 ∝ N s 1 . The backbone stiffness of the rod brush is higher than that of the flexible brush consisting of flexible polystyrene side chains with the corresponding contour length. A single rod brush of poly(VB-HIC-47) deposited on a mica surface is observed by the scanning force microscopy to reasonably demonstrate the cylindrical rod brushes.

Electroluminescent devises consisted of two layers, a hole injecting diamine layer and an emitting Tb3+ complex of acetylacetonate layer, were fabricated by vacuum deposition. The EL cells exhibited characteristic bright Tb3+ luminescence with high efficiency at low drive voltage.

Electroluminescent devices with poly(methylphenylsilane) film doped with Eu3+ complexes were fabricated. The cell structure of glass substrate/indium-tin-oxide/polysilane/electron transport layer/Mg/Ag was employed. Sharp red electroluminescence of europium ion was obtained at dc bias voltage of over 12 V.