Organic Light-Emitting Devices

Although it has long been possible to make organic materials emit light, it has only recently become possible to do so at the level and with the efficiency and control necessary to make the materials a useful basis for illumination or displays. The early electroluminescent devices provided reasonably bright light, but required high operating voltages, produced only a narrow range of colors, and had severely limited lifetimes. Recent developments, however, make it possible to manufacture organic light-emitting devices that are thin, bright, efficient, and stable and that produce a broad range of colors.