R2R Production of Low-Cost Integrated OLED Substrate with Improved Transparent Conductor & Enhanced Light Outcoupling

Organic LED lighting technology has the potential to dramatically reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions while creating new research and manufacturing jobs in the US. However, current manufacturing technology is not able to produce products that are sufficiently cost effective, efficient or stable to succeed commercially. A breakthrough in manufacturing technology is needed to realize the benefits of this new form of lighting. We are developing a new type of enhanced substrate for OLED lighting that will improve efficiency and performance while significantly reducing manufacturing costs. This substrate is made by roll-to-roll manufacturing and can be adapted to virtually any type of OLED device architecture. We will develop and demonstrate these improvements using both simple white-light devices and commercial white OLED lighting panels. What was done in Phase I: We made and demonstrated three key structures that significantly improved the performance of OLED devices: an internal nanoarray that increased the extraction of internally (waveguide) trapped light, an inexpensive microlens array that increased the overall internally reflected light output, and a hybrid metal micromesh structure that improved the efficiency and uniformity of the transparent conductor layer. Our first Phase II goal will be to complete the development of the nano- and microstructure enhancement films successfully begun in Phase I and demonstrate the benefit of these films with functional white OLED devices made by multiple manufacturers and developers. Our second goal will be to begin development of a modular roll-to-roll (R2R) pilot processing line to produce these materials. This will lay the groundwork for supplying large quantities of low-cost enhanced substrate to multiple OLED developers and manufacturers.Commercial Applications and Other Benefits The availability of low-cost OLED lighting will greatly expand the current market for solid-state lighting by extending it into new areas that are made possible with the availability of flexible, thin, lightweight, large-area lighting filmsareas that conventional LED lighting cannot address. The expanded adoption of high-efficiency solid state lighting will further reduce overall US energy consumption.