Abstract :
A new way of coaxing light out of an organic LED may make for cheaper displays and could even provide a way to see magnetic fields. By choosing a molecule of a particular shape, a team of German and American researchers designed a new type of OLED that has the potential to emit as much light as a commercial OLED, but without the rare metals normally added to make the devices efficient. If manufacturers could leave out metals such as iridium or platinum, they might not have to worry about potential shortages of these elements. This would allow them to bring down the costs of OLEDs, which are increasingly being used in the screens of smartphones and televisions, as well as in solid-state lighting.