Steven C. Allen

A nearly ideal phosphor-converted white light-emitting diode

A phosphor-converted light-emitting diode was obtained with nearly ideal blue-to-white conversion loss of only 1%. This is achieved using internal reflection to steer phosphor emission away from lossy surfaces, a reflector material with high reflectivity, and a remotely located organic phosphor having (1) unity quantum efficiency (ηq), (2) homogeneous refractive index to minimize scattering, and (3) refractive index-matched to the encapsulation to eliminate total internal reflection. An inorganic composite phosphor is also reported with a nearly homogeneous refractive index to minimize diffuse scattering of emitted light, thereby maximizing the effective phosphor ηq and light extraction.

ELiXIR-Solid-State Luminaire With Enhanced Light Extraction by Internal Reflection

A phosphor-converted light-emitting diode (pcLED) luminaire featuring enhanced light extraction by internal reflection (ELiXIR) with efficacy of 60 lm/W producing 18 lumens of yellowish green light at 100 mA is presented. The luminaire consists of a commercial blue high power LED, a polymer hemispherical shell lens with interior phosphor coating, and planar aluminized reflector. High extraction efficiency of the phosphor-converted light is achieved by separating the phosphor from the LED and using internal reflection to steer the light away from lossy reflectors and the LED package and out of the device. At 10 and 500mA, the luminaire produces 2.1 and 66 lumens with efficacies of 80 and 37 lm/W, respectively. Technological improvements over existing commercial LEDs, such as more efficient pcLED packages or, alternatively, higher efficiency green or yellow for color mixing, will be essential to achieving 150-200 lm/W solid-state lighting. Advances in both areas are demonstrated

Maximizing Alq/sub 3/ OLED internal and external efficiencies: charge balanced device structure and color conversion outcoupling lenses

In this paper, we report bright, efficient Alq3-based [tris-(8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminum] organic light-emitting diode (OLED) structures that incorporate hemispherical lenses for increased output power efficiency. The 6-layer hybrid (polymer/small molecule) OLED structure contains two spin-coated polymer layers and four thermally evaporated small molecule layers. This structure results in balanced charge injection, thus leading to a more efficient device. The use of index-matched transparent lenses resulted in luminous and external quantum efficiency of 7.5 lm/W and 8%, respectively. The size and shape of the lens was used to control the angular power distribution. Lenses incorporating color conversion media were used to achieve high OLED efficiency in various colors. Saturated yellow, orange, and red devices with external quantum efficiencies as high ~4% were obtained from this approach

Light wave coupled flat panel displays and solid-state lighting using hybrid inorganic/organic materials

We present a review of light-emitting materials and devices that combine inorganic and organic lumophores and hosts. The essence of this hybrid inorganic/organic (I/O) approach is to combine materials, structures and devices from each category in such a way as to obtain best-of-both-worlds performance. The combination of high power/high efficiency inorganic light pump sources with high conversion efficiency organic lumophores is discussed in detail. In this type of Hybrid I/O device, near-ultraviolet (UV) or blue pump light is selectively converted to various visible colors based on the molecular structure of each lumophore. Since the lumophores are optically pumped their reliability is greatly increased compared to electrically pumped organic emitters. Methods for coupling the light from pumps to lumophores include direct path excitation (DPE) and light wave coupling (LWC). DPE uses one pump per lumophore pixel, which allows for active matrix style addressing, but requires large arrays of pumps. LWC uses either a single source or a small number of pump sources. To obtain pixelation for Hybrid I/O LWC devices we have developed a novel electrowetting switching method. Examples of Hybrid I/O displays and solid-state lighting are discussed.

Transitioning large-diameter Type II Superlattice detector wafers to manufacturing

The tri-service Vital Infrared Sensor Technology Acceleration (VISTA) program rapidly matured III-V semiconductor epitaxy to produce tactically viable detectors using Type II Superlattice (T2SL) structures. The T2SL material system allows tunable band gaps for creating lattice-matched heterojunction devices. Heterojunction devices are integral to suppressing sources of dark currents, such as internal Shockley Reed Hall (SRH) and device surface currents. Once the VISTA program demonstrated that T2SL detectors offered competitive performance to traditional indium antimonide (InSb) detectors at an operating temperature 40K to 50 K higher, many opportunities emerged. This elevation in operating temperature provides two benefits to infrared (IR) sensors. The first is to miniaturize the integrated Dewar-electronicscooler assembly (IDECA) such that it can support small aerial vehicle and soldier mounted sensors. The second is to increase the mean time to failure (MTTF) of an existing InSb IDECA. To benefit from T2SL higher operating temperature (HOT) detectors, the overall cost of the IDECA must be competitive with InSb. This drives a manufacturing capability that is equivalent to InSb. At the L3 Space and Sensors Technology Center (L3 SSTC), the III-V detector foundry processes 125 mm diameter InSb wafers. The development of 125 mm diameter T2SL detector wafers started with the gallium antimonide substrates. The greater size and weight of these substrates required extra care to avoid breakage. Leveraging the learning reported from the silicon industry, we developed a specification for the substrate thickness and edge bevel to provide a robust platform for wafer processing. Next, we worked with commercial III-V epitaxy suppliers to develop multi-wafer growth capability for 125 mm diameter substrates. The results of this effort, funded by the Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) Defense-wide Manufacturing Science and Technology (DMST) program through the Army Night Vision and Electronic Sensor Directorate (NVESD), we were able to improve focal plane array (FPA) yield from virtually zero to InSb manufacturing levels.

P-59: A Novel Fluorescent Display Using Light Wave Coupling Technology

A novel fluorescent pixelated display and signage technology is reported using light wave coupling (LWC). Full-color LWC devices have been demonstrated with >2 lm/W, >500:1 contrast, and >1000 cd/m2 luminance. With use of existing display components, theoretical performance of ∼1 ms pixel response time, lifetime >30,000 hrs, and >10 lm/W efficiency, are fully expected for flexible and rigid panels.