Jeihyun Lee

Direct evidence of n-type doping in organic light-emitting devices: N free Cs doping from CsN3

Cesium azide (CsN3) is confirmed to be decomposed during thermal evaporation. Only Cs could be deposited on tris(8-hydroxyquinolinato)aluminum (Alq3) and n-type doping is easily achieved. Organic light-emitting devices with CsN3 show highly improved current density-luminance-voltage characteristics compared to the control device without CsN3. To understand the origin of the improvements, in situ x-ray and UV photoemission spectroscopy measurements were carried out and a remarkable reduction in electron injection barrier is verified with successive deposition of Al on CsN3 on Alq3. CsN3 has a potential as alternative to doping the electron transport layer by replacing the direct deposition of alkali metals.

Interfacial energy level alignments between low-band-gap polymer PTB7 and indium zinc oxide anode

The interfacial energy level alignments between poly(thieno[3,4-b]-thiophene)-co-benzodithiophene (PTB7) and indium zinc oxide (IZO) were investigated. In situ ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy measurements were conducted with the step-by-step deposition of PTB7 on IZO substrate. All spectral changes were analyzed between each deposition step, and interfacial energy level alignments were estimated. The hole barrier of standard ultraviolet-ozone treated IZO is 0.58 eV, which is lower than the value of 1.09 eV obtained for bare IZO. The effect of barrier reduction on the hole transport was also confirmed with electrical measurements of hole-dominated devices.

The reduction of effective doping with extra dopant: n-Type doping of tris(8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminum with K

We studied the n-type doping effect of K deposited on tris(8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminum (Alq3), which has been used for efficient organic semiconducting devices for the last decade. The K doped or inserted at the interface region of the Alq3/cathode has shown highly enhanced device characteristics and yet, peculiarly, extra doping of K has always deteriorated the device properties. We study the interfacial electronic structures of the Alq3–K system using in situ photoemission spectroscopy and a theoretical model to understand the origin of such deterioration. As the K doping progresses, the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) of pristine Alq3 is gradually filled and it becomes an occupied gap state. This reduction of LUMO density of states makes the electron injection diminished, which is the origin of the device deterioration.

Interface state and dipole assisted hole injection improvement with 1,4,5,8,-naphthalene-tetracarboxylic-dianhydride in organic light-emitting devices

1,4,5,8-naphthalene-tetracarboxylic-dianhydride (NTCDA) is known to improve hole injection when inserted between the hole transport layer and the indium tin oxide (ITO) anode in organic light emitting devices. To clarify the origin of the improvement, the interfacial electronic structures between N,N′-diphenyl-N, N′-bis(1-naphthyl)(1,1′-biphenyl)-4,4′ diamine (NPB, typical hole transport layer) and ITO with a NTCDA insertion layer were explored. The NTCDA layer generates an interface state when it interacts with ITO and also induces large interface dipole. The interface state assists hole transport and the interface dipole pulls entire energy levels of NPB up, reducing the hole injection barrier.

Anomalous hole injection deterioration of organic light-emitting diodes with a manganese phthalocyanine layer

Metal phthalocyanines (MPcs) are well known as an efficient hole injection layer (HIL) in organic devices. They possess a low ionization energy, and so the low-lying highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) gives a small hole injection barrier from an anode in organic light-emitting diodes. However, in this study, we show that the hole injection characteristics of MPc are not only determined by the HOMO position but also significantly affected by the wave function distribution of the HOMO. We show that even with the HOMO level of a manganese phthalocyanine (MnPc) HIL located between the Fermi level of an indium tin oxide anode and the HOMO level of a N,N′-bis(1-naphthyl)-N,N′-diphenyl-1,1′-biphenyl-4,4′-diamine hole transport layer the device performance with the MnPc HIL is rather deteriorated. This anomalous hole injection deterioration is due to the contracted HOMO wave function, which leads to small intermolecular electronic coupling. The origin of this contraction is the significant contribution of the Mn d-orbital to the MnPc HOMO.

Strong interfacial dipole formation with thermal evaporation of lithium cobalt oxide for efficient electron injections

We investigated the electronic structures at the interface of Al/lithium cobalt oxide (LiCoO2)/tris(8-hydoxyquinoline) aluminum (Alq3) to elucidate the origin of the electron injection enhancement with the insertion of the LiCoO2 layer in organic light-emitting devices using in situ photoelectron spectroscopy experiments. We discovered that LiCoO2 was decomposed into lithium oxide (Li2O) by thermal evaporation, and only Li2O was deposited on the desired substrate. Li2O forms a strong interfacial dipole, which reduces the surface potential on Alq3 due to its extremely low work function. As a result, the electron injection barrier was dramatically decreased by the Li2O layer. Furthermore, there is no strong chemical interaction at the interface of Al/Li2O/Alq3; hence, this would contribute to extend the device lifetime.

Different contact formations at the interfaces of C60/LiF/Al and C60/LiF/Ag

C60 has been used as an electron accepting and transporting material in various organic electronic devices. In such devices, Al and Ag have been adopted as a common cathode in combination with electron injection layers (EIL), e.g., LiF. We found that the initial interface formations of C60/LiF/Al and C60/LiF/Ag are quite different in terms of interfacial electronic structures. We measured the interfacial electronic structures with photoemission spectroscopy and found that LiF works well as an EIL on Al but performs poorly on Ag. The origin of this difference could be attributed to the larger interface dipole on Al, highlighting the importance of the choice of cathode materials.