Technical / Research - Page 86

Fluxim has released a new version (v3.1) of their device simulation software SETFOS. The new version comes with a new steady-state numerical algorithm that allows for fast calculation of current-voltage curves and an improved transient solver. Fitting of experimental data for the extraction of electrical material parameters like charge mobilities and HOMO/LUMO levels becomes feasible.

The powerful optical solver is used to quantify device characteristics like radiation modes of OLEDs, absorption efficiencies of solar cells or to determine material refractive index dispersions. The software provides quantitative units for light radiation, a treatment of rough interfaces and enhanced emission zone extraction methods.

Novaled is demonstrating OLEDs made on metal (steel) substrates that are only 0.7mm thick. Those substrates require specific top-emitting OLED structures, and Novaled has developed dedicated ITO-free OLEDs that has a similar performance to standard bottom-emission OLEDs. Novaled is also working on thin-film encapsulation that will enable flexible OLEDs.

Novaled say that metal substrates has several advantages: they will enable flexibility, they have good heat conduction properties, and the "open the roadmap" towards low-cost roll-to-roll production. They also look great and are very robust.

We know that NeoView Kolon are working on transparent OLEDs (mostly PMOLEDs) - but now we hear that they are also working towards OLED Lighting panels, using bottom-emission RGB light sources.

Neoview-Kolon plans to purchase production equipment (370 x 470) for both their Transparent-OLED and OLED Lighting markets.

QuickLogic announced the verification of their Visual Enhancement Engine (VEE) and Display Power Optimizer (DPO) technologies with OLED displays for mobile devices. These technologies enhance the viewability of displays in low-brightness or bright-ambient-light conditions by dynamically optimizing video characteristics to provide a better user experience. They also allow the brightness to be lowered and thus enhance battery life.

QuickLogic's proprietary VEE technology enhances image and video quality by optimizing the dynamic range, contrast, and color saturation of content on the display on a pixel-by-pixel basis. This provides a superior viewing experience for the user under any ambient light condition. QuickLogic's DPO technology can significantly reduce display power consumption through intelligent control of the display brightness.

Researchers from the University of Florida has developed a new night-vision technology using OLEDs. They are using thin-film OLED panels to convert infrared light to the visible spectrum. The design has 7 separate OLED layers - each one amplifying the signal and converting it to the visible spectrum.

They say that a full-scale night vision can weight less than 125 grams and be very efficient. This can revolutionize night vision as we know it. They have currently made a prototype that's only 1 square cm in size, but in 18 months they hope to scale it up to a cell-phone display size, or even a car windshield. This research is funded by DARPA.

E²M Technology are now offering low-cost OLED evaluation kits. Their solutions can help make OLEDs more accessible for businesses and educators who want to evaluation the technology. E²M Technology's products range are OLED Science Kits, Encapsulation fluids, OLED electronic drivers, ultraviolet curers and ultraviolet curable fluids for OLEDs.

The OLED science kit are designed to enable users to evaluate OLEDs. Users can experiment with the physical structure of OLEDs and electronic control parameters. You can make a working OLED device in two hours and it does not require an ultra-clean environment. The cost is £290.00.

Philips has opened the Lumiblade Creative Lab - where professionals from a wide
range of creative backgrounds can experience and experiment with Lumiblades OLED lighting panels. It's a workshop based in Aachen, Germany that can give advice, guidance and practical support for OLED Lighting projects.

Philips ceiling OLED lamp photo

They are currently showing ten designs (some of them new, some older) utilizing Lumiblade panels.

InnoPhysics has performed successful feasibility studies at the Holst Centre, and now is ready to go to market with its proprietary Digital-on-Demand PlasmaPrint hardware solution. They say that their technology enables software patterned surface functionalization, etching and deposition of functional coatings on thin (plastic) substrates.

Plasma-printed OLED lighting test structures

The proprietary InnoPhysics technology solution operates on a large variety of plastic substrates in ambient conditions, at room temperature and it provides flexibility in patterning, i.e. mask-less. As part of the go-to-market strategy, InnoPhysics is developing a PlasmaPrint toolkit integratable with existing table-top R&D print platforms.

NeoView Kolon is showing some new transparent OLED prototypes. They say that one of the promising uses of these displays is in the automotive industry (to embed those in the front windshield). They are mostly focusing on PM-OLED displays.

One of the displays on show is a 2.4" QVGA AMOLED panel. It supports 16M colors and has a maximum 62% transmittance. The brightness is 1000cd/m2.

Japan's Kaneka say that their OLED Lighting panels are ready to be shipped. If someone places an order, they can be mass produced. Kaneka has been working on OLED Lighting since April 2008, and originally planned to have a 3-year research project. They now say they decided to commercialize the technology even before the research project is finished.

Kaneka offers three OLED panels. The first is a daylight color panel (6000K) with a maximum brightness of 5,000cd/m² and a lifetime of 15,000 hours (when the initial brightness is 1,000cd/m²). The second panel has a warm-white (3000K), 5,000cd/m² maximum brightness and a lifetime of 10,000 hours. The third panel is red with 2,000cd/m² max brightness and lifetime of 5,000 hours.