Improving efficiency roll-off in phosphorescent OLEDs by modifying the exciton lifetime

Studies on phosphorescent organic light emitting devices (PhOLEDs) with phosphorescent emitter, fac-tris (2-phenylpyridine) iridium (Ir(ppy)(3)), show that the lifetime of triplet exciton is modified by surface plasmon coupling of Au nanoparticles (NPs). Interactions between the triplet exciton and gold (Au) nanoparticles (NPs) lead to a decrease in the exciton lifetime and result in the spontaneous emission decay rate of triplet exciton faster as the distance between the phosphorescent material and the Au NPs becomes smaller. This interaction reduces the efficiency roll-off of Au NPs containing device. These results provide new guides for device design to improve efficiency performance.     

Highly Luminescent Material Based on Alq3:Ag Nanoparticles

Tris (8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminum (Alq₃) is an organic semiconductor molecule, widely used as an electron transport layer, light emitting layer in organic light-emitting diodes and a host for fluorescent and phosphorescent dyes. In this work thin films of pure and silver (Ag), cupper (Cu), terbium (Tb) doped Alq₃ nanoparticles were synthesized using the physical vapor condensation method. They were fabricated on glass substrates and characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscope (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy, atomic force microscope (AFM), UV-visible absorption spectra and studied for their photoluminescence (PL) properties. SEM and AFM results show spherical nanoparticles with size around 70–80 nm. These nanoparticles have almost equal sizes and a homogeneous size distribution. The maximum absorption of Alq₃ nanoparticles is observed at 300 nm, while the surface plasmon resonant band of Ag doped sample appears at 450 nm. The PL emission spectra of Tb, Cu and Ag doped Alq₃ nanoparticles show a single broad band at around 515 nm, which is similar to that of the pure one, but with enhanced PL intensity. The sample doped with Ag at a concentration ratio of Alq₃:Ag?=?1:0.8 is found to have the highest PL intensity, which is around 2 times stronger than that of the pure one. This enhancement could be attributed to the surface plasmon resonance of Ag ions that might have increased the absorption and then the quantum yield. These remarkable result suggest that Alq₃ nanoparticles incorporated with Ag ions might be quite useful for future nano-optoelectronic devices.     

Au纳米颗粒和CdTe量子点复合体系发光增强和猝灭效应

利用金属蒸发真空多弧离子源注入机, 将Au离子注入到高纯石英玻璃来制备镶嵌有Au 纳米颗粒的衬底材料, 随后将化学方法合成的CdTe量子点旋涂在玻璃衬底上制备了Au纳米颗粒和CdTe量子点复合体系. 通过对镶嵌有Au纳米颗粒的衬底进行热退火处理来控制Au纳米颗粒的生长和分布, 系统研究了Au纳米颗粒的局域表面等离子体共振对CdTe量子点光致发光性能的影响. 利用光学吸收谱、原子力显微镜、透射电子显微镜和光致发光谱对样品进行了表征和测试. 光致发光谱表明, Au纳米颗粒的局域表面等离子体对CdTe量子点的发光有增强效应也有猝灭效应. 深入分析了Au纳米颗粒和CdTe量子点之间的相互作用过程, 提出了关于Au-CdTe 纳米复合体系中CdTe 发光增强和猝灭的新机理. 该实验结果为利用金属纳米颗粒表面等离子体技术制备高发光性能的光电子器件提供了较好的参考.     

Silver‐Based Nanoparticles for Surface Plasmon Resonance in Organic Optoelectronics

Organic optoelectronic devices including organic light‐emitting diodes (OLEDs) and polymer solar cells (PSCs) have many advantages, including low‐cost, mechanical flexibility, and amenability to large‐area fabrication based on printing techniques, and have therefore attracted attention as next‐generation flexible optoelectronic devices. Although almost 100% internal quantum efficiency of OLEDs has been achieved by using phosphorescent emitters and optimizing device structures, the external quantum efficiency (EQE) of OLEDs is still limited due to poor light extraction. Also, although intensive efforts to develop new conjugated polymers and device architectures have improved power conversion efficiency (PCE) up to 8%–9%, device efficiency must be improved to >10% for commercialization of PSCs. The surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect of metal nanoparticles (NPs) can be an effective way to improve the extraction of light produced by decay of excitons in the emission layer and by absorption of incident light energy within the active layer. Silver (Ag) NPs are promising plasmonic materials due to a strong SPR peak and light‐scattering effect. In this review, different SPR properties of Ag NPs are introduced as a function of size, shape, and surrounding matrix, and review recent progress on application of the SPR effect of AgNPs to OLEDs and PSCs.     

The color of finely dispersed nanoparticles

We discuss the dependence of the color of low-concentrated nanoparticle systems on particle size and mass concentration for Ag, Au and TiN nanoparticles, which exhibit a surface plasmon polariton resonance in extinction spectra. Comparison is made with color data obtained for Ag and Au colloidal suspensions. When particles lump into aggregates, the splitting of the surface plasmon resonance into new resonances affects the extinction of light and, hence, the color of the particle assembly. This is demonstrated for aggregated colloidal suspensions of Ag and Au nanoparticles. Finally, for highly concentrated assemblies such as pigment films, we discuss the dependence of the color in diffuse reflectance and transmittance according to Kubelka and Munk (P. Kubelka, F. Munk: Z. Techn. Phys. 12, 593 (1931)), and extend this model by using optical properties of aggregates of spheres. Received: 2 July 2001 / Published online: 10 October 2001     

倒置器件结构及局域等离子体效应对CdSe量子点LED发光性能的改进

研究了倒置器件结构以及CdSe量子点发光材料与金属纳米粒子之间的相互作用对量子点的电致发光性能的影响。利用TiO₂作为电子传输/注入层,成功地制备了倒置结构的量子点电致发光器件。通过对单载流子器件电压-电流特性的分析,证明了ITO作为阴极到TiO₂的电子注入特性与Al作为阴极时的效果几乎相同。观察到金属纳米粒子产生的局域等离子体效应提高了器件的效率,使得效率随电流增大而降低的速度明显减小。在电流密度为200 mA/cm²时,电致发光器件的效率大约提高了42%。     

双金属/TiO2纳米管复合结构中增强的光电流

将传统半导体材料与金属微纳结构相结合,利用其表面等离激元共振效应,可有效地增强复合结构的光电转换效率,使其广泛地被用于光电化学和光电探测等领域.本文以氧化铝纳米管为模板,采用原子层沉积技术制备出高有序的TiO2纳米管,并通过电子束热蒸发技术在大孔径的纳米管薄膜中分别负载金、铝和双金属金/铝纳米颗粒,形成金属纳米颗粒/TiO2纳米管复合结构.研究结果表明,相对于纯TiO2纳米管,Au/TiO2复合纳米管在568 nm的可见光照射下,其光电流密度约有400%的提高;在365 nm紫外光照射下,Al/TiO2复合纳米管的光电流提高约50%;同时负载双金属Au和Al纳米颗粒的TiO2纳米管在整个紫外-可见光区域光电流均显著增强.     

Efficient source of single photons: a single quantum dot in a micropost microcavity

We have demonstrated efficient production of triggered single photons by coupling a single semiconductor quantum dot to a three-dimensionally confined optical mode in a micropost microcavity. The efficiency of emitting single photons into a single-mode traveling wave is approximately 38%, which is nearly 2 orders of magnitude higher than for a quantum dot in bulk semiconductor material. At the same time, the probability of having more than one photon in a given pulse is reduced by a factor of 7 as compared to light with Poissonian photon statistics.     

Influence of Silver and Gold Nanoparticles and Thin Layers on Charge Carrier Generation in InGaN/GaN Multiple Quantum Well Structures and Crystalline Zinc Oxide Films

It has been shown that Ag and Au nanoparticles and thin layers influence charge carrier generation in InGaN/GaN multiple quantum well structures and crystalline ZnO films owing to the surface morphology heterogeneity of the semiconductors. When nanoparticles 10 < d < 20 nm in size are applied on InGaN/GaN multiple quantum well structures with surface morphology less nonuniform than that of ZnO films, the radiation intensity has turned out to grow considerably because of a plasmon resonance with the participation of localized plasmons. The application of Ag or Au layers on the surface of the structures strongly attenuates the radiation. When Ag and Au nanoparticles are applied on crystalline ZnO films obtained by rf magnetron sputtering, the radiation intensity in the short-wavelength part of the spectrum increases insignificantly because of their highly heterogeneous surface morphology.     

Superluminal optical soliton via resonant tunneling in coupled quantum dots

We demonstrate the formation of superluminal optical soliton in an symmetry semiconductor double quantum dot (QD) driven coherently by a weak pulsed laser using the tunnel coupling. It is shown that the group velocity of the soliton can be larger than the vacuum light speed c, i.e., superluminal soliton can be produced. The results obtained can be used for the development of new types of nanoelectronic devices for realizing high-speed optical modulation and rapidly responding quantum switching.     

Engineering the plasmon resonance of large area bimetallic nanoparticle films by laser nanostructuring for chemical sensors

Large area fabrication of metal alloy nanoparticles with tunable surface plasmon resonances on low-cost substrates is reported. A UV excimer laser was used to anneal 5 nm thick Ag Au bilayer films deposited with different composition ratios to create alloy nanoparticles. These engineered surfaces are used to investigate how the wavelength of the surface plasmon resonance affects the optical detection capability of chemical species by surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy.     

Excitonics of semiconductor quantum dots and wires for lighting and displays

In the past two decades, semiconductor quantum dots and wires have developed into new, promising classes of materials for next‐generation lighting and display systems due to their superior optical properties. In particular, exciton–exciton interactions through nonradiative energy transfer in hybrid systems of these quantum‐confined structures have enabled exciting possibilities in light generation. This review focuses on the excitonics of such quantum dot and wire emitters, particularly transfer of the excitons in the complex media of the quantum dots and wires. Mastering excitonic interactions in low‐dimensional systems is essential for the development of better light sources, e.g., high‐efficiency, high‐quality white‐light generation; wide‐range color tuning; and high‐purity color generation. In addition, introducing plasmon coupling provides the ability to amplify emission in specially designed exciton–plasmon nanostructures and also to exceed the Förster limit in excitonic interactions. In this respect, new routes to control excitonic pathways are reviewed in this paper. The review further discusses research opportunities and challenges in the quantum dot and wire excitonics with a future outlook.     

Ligand-free gold–silver nanoparticle alloy polymer composites generated by picosecond laser ablation in liquid monomer

Polymer matrix nanocomposites filled with metallic and alloy nanoparticles add functionality in various applications such as optical devices and in the energy sector. However, matrix coupling agents or nanoparticle ligands may be unwanted additives, potentially inhibiting the resulting nanocomposite to be processed by injection molding. The generation of stabilizer-free Au, Ag, and AuAg alloy nanoparticle acrylate composites is achieved by picosecond-pulsed laser ablation of the respective metal target in the liquid monomer. Complementary to laser ablation of the solid alloy, we have alloyed nanoparticles by post-irradiation of Au and Ag colloids in the liquid monomer. The optical properties of the colloidal nanoparticles are successfully transferred to the solid poly(methyl methacrylate) matrix and characterized by their plasmon resonance that can be easily tuned between 400 and 600 nm by laser alloying in the liquid monomer.     

The effect of temperature on the recombination rate of AlGaN/GaN light emitting diodes

Nitride semiconductors and their alloys recently have versatile applications as high-power and high-efficiency electro optical devices duo to their high thermal stability, direct transition and wide bang-gap. Nanostructure light emitting diodes of these materials have an emission spectrum from infrared to ultraviolet. In this paper, besides simulating a nanostructure nitride semiconductor LED, such as multi quantum well nitride LEDs, the effect of temperature on the recombination rate has been investigated.     

Penetration of electric fields induced by surface phonon modes into the layers of a semiconductor heterostructure

The penetration of electric fields induced by surface optical phonons into adjacent layers of semiconductor heterostructures is investigated. The mechanical displacement of ions, the corresponding electric fields, and the dispersion relations for surface phonon modes in single and double heterostructures are calculated within the macroscopic phenomenological model of optical lattice vibrations. To estimate the penetration depth of the surface electric fields, the intraband relaxation rate of the electron subsystem of a quantum dot embedded in a heterostructure, related to these fields, is calculated as a function of the distance from the interface between the media to the quantum dot.     

Dual-Color Quantum Dot–Encoded Nanoprobe for DNA Assays and Cell Imaging

In this article, a novel dual-color quantum dot–encoded fluorescent nanoprobe was prepared by the reverse microemulsion method and layer-by-layer assembly method. First, red fluorescence–emitting CdTe quantum dots were encapsulated in silica nanoparticles by the reverse microemulsion method. Yellow fluorescence–emitting quantum dots were deposited on the surface of silica nanoparticles to form a dual-color quantum dot@silica beads/quantum dot nanoprobe. Then capture DNA was linked to a QSQ nanoprobe via covalent bonding. We utilized the quantum dot@silica beads/quantum dot nanoprobe to capture and detect the mutant BRAF DNA sequence through the competitive immunoassay method. The resulting quantum dot@silica beads/quantum dot nanoprobe-capture DNA conjugates showed sequence-specific hybridization with target DNA. Furthermore, a multispectral imaging system was utilized to distinguish the quantum dot optical code in the quantum dot@silica beads/quantum dot nanoprobe. The quantum dot@silica beads/quantum dot nanoprobe was used in human osteoblast-like HepG2 cell imaging. The proposed quantum dot@silica beads/quantum dot nanoprobe and decoding analysis method could be used for targeting imaging, biological assays, and early detection of cancer.     

Quantum dot materials for terahertz generation applications

Compact and tunable semiconductor terahertz sources providing direct electrical control, efficient operation at room temperatures and device integration opportunities are of great interest at the present time. One of the most well‐established techniques for terahertz generation utilises photoconductive antennas driven by ultrafast pulsed or dual‐wavelength continuous wave laser systems, though some limitations, such as confined optical wavelength pumping range and thermal breakdown, still exist. The use of quantum dot‐based semiconductor materials, having unique carrier dynamics and material properties, can help to overcome limitations and enable efficient optical‐to‐terahertz signal conversion at room temperatures. Here we discuss the construction of novel and versatile terahertz transceiver systems based on quantum dot semiconductor devices. Configurable, energy‐dependent optical and electronic characteristics of quantum‐dot‐based semiconductors are described, and the resonant response to optical pump wavelength is revealed. Terahertz signal generation and detection at energies that resonantly excite only the implanted quantum dots opens the potential for using compact quantum dot‐based semiconductor lasers as pump sources. Proof‐of‐concept experiments are demonstrated here that show quantum dot‐based samples to have higher optical pump damage thresholds and reduced carrier lifetime with increasing pump power.

     

Anode material based on SWCNT for infrared quantum dot light-emitting devices

We present an optical model based on Green’s function to investigate the effect of using single-wall carbon nanotube (SWCNT) as anode for infrared quantum dot light-emitting devices (IR QD-LEDs). To the best of our knowledge, there is no report in using SWCNT as anode in IR QD-LEDs. We have studied the emitted power distribution among the different optical modes (external propagating mode (photon outcoupling efficiency), substrate, anode/organics, and surface plasmon modes (SP)), angular intensity distribution, viewing angle effect on the optical characteristics, and the emission spectral characteristics. We have found that the light outcoupling efficiency of IR QD-LEDs based on SWCNT as anode was increased nearly by a factor of 4 relative to that one based on indium-tin oxide (ITO). We also investigated the effect of using different cathode materials on the optical characteristics of IR QD-LEDs.     

Effect of surface treatment of GaN based light emitting diode wafers on the leakage current of light emitting diode devices

To form low-resistance Ohmic contact to p-type GaN, InGaN/GaN multiple quantum well light emitting diode wafers are treated with boiled aqua regia prior to Ni/Au (5~nm/5~nm) film deposition. The surface morphology of wafers and the current--voltage characteristics of fabricated light emitting diode devices are investigated. It is shown that surface treatment with boiled aqua regia could effectively remove oxide from the surface of the p-GaN layer, and reveal defect-pits whose density is almost the same as the screw dislocation density estimated by x-ray rocking curve measurement. It suggests that the metal atoms of the Ni/Au transparent electrode of light emitting diode devices may diffuse into the p-GaN layer along threading dislocation lines and form additional leakage current channels. Therefore, the surface treatment time with boiled aqua regia should not be too long so as to avoid the increase of threading dislocation-induced leakage current and the degradation of electrical properties of light emitting diodes.     

Enhancement of GaAs/InGaAs quantum well emission by disordered gold nanoparticle arrays

Coupling effect of surface plasmon (SP) with InGaAs/GaAs QW emission is demonstrated experimentally. The SP resonance is generated by disordered arrays of Au nanodisks on the InGaAs/GaAs QW surface. More than twofold enhancement in QW PL is observed. Theoretical simulations also indicated that the disordered arrays of Au structures enlarged the cone angle for which light can be radiated out. The larger angle enhances the PL intensity.