Optimal thickness of hole transport layer in doped OLEDs

Current-voltage (I–V) and electroluminescence (EL) characteristics of organic light-emitting devices with N,N’-Di-[(1-naphthalenyl)-N,N’-diphenyl]-(1,1’-biphenyl)-4,4’-diamine (NPB) of various thicknesses as the hole transport layer, and tris(8-hydroxyquinoline)aluminum (Alq3) selectively doped with 4-(dicyanomethylene)-2-methyl-6-(p-dimethylaminostyryl)-4H-pyran (DCM) as the electron transport layer, have been investigated. A trapped charge induced band bend model is proposed to explain the I–V characteristics. It is suggested that space charge changes the injection barrier and therefore influences the electron injection process in addition to the carrier transport process. Enhanced external quantum efficiency of the devices due to the electron blocking effect of an inserted NPB layer is observed. The optimal thickness of the NPB layer is experimentally determined to be 12±3 nm in doped devices, a value different from that for undoped devices, which is attributed to the electron trap effect of DCM molecules. This is consistent with the result that the proportion of Alq3 luminescence in the total electroluminescence (EL) spectra increases with NPB thickness up to 12 nm under a fixed bias.