AVS 58th Annual International Symposium and Exhibition
    Applied Surface Science Division Thursday Sessions
       Session AS-ThM

Paper AS-ThM11
Gas-Cluster Ion Beam Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry Characterization of Thin Films for Organic Electronics Applications

Thursday, November 3, 2011, 11:20 am, Room 102

Session: Analysis of Insulators and Challenging Samples
Presenter: Daniel J. Gaspar, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Authors: D.J. Gaspar, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
S.R. Bryan, Physical Electronics USA
T. Miyayama, ULVAC-PHI, Japan
A.B. Padmaperuma, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
J.S. Swensen, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
E. Polikarpov, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Correspondent: Click to Email
Organic light emitting devices (OLEDs) have the potential to dramatically change the way we light our living spaces. OLEDs offer the potential for high efficiency lighting from a large area source, with the possibility of transparent and flexible lighting as well. Currently, OLED displays are found commercially in cell phones and in televisions in limited production. One of the key barriers holding back widespread adoption of OLEDs for both lighting and other products is the challenge of generating long-lived devices, particularly for high-efficiency phosphorescent blue OLEDs (a necessary component of high-efficiency white OLEDs). Challenges in the design of stable materials are hampered by our relatively poor ability to measure degradation products in situ, or in ways that ensure we have not damaged the material in the measurement process. To this end, we have generated thin films of single blue phosphorescent OLED components, multilayer films, and working OLEDs before and after aging. These components including the well-studied bis[2-(4,6-difluorophenyl)pyridyl-N,C2′]iridium (III) (FIrpic), 2,8-bis(diphenylphosphoryl)dibenzothiophene (PO15), 4-(diphenylphosphoryl)-N,N-diphenylaniline (HM-A1) and di-[4-(N,N-ditolyl-amino)-phenyl]cyclohexane (TAPC). Based on previous experiments in our lab and literature reports, FIrpic and PO15 are known to undergo degradation reactions under conditions similar to those used in this series of experiments. Analysis of these films and systems by gas cluster ion beam secondary ion mass spectrometry (GCIB-SIMS) and other methods show degradation products, which permit the development of useful models for their degradation pathways. These results clearly demonstrate the utility of GCIB-SIMS in the characterization and analysis of OLED devices and materials, and should enable better design and screening of stable materials for high-efficiency OLEDs.