Multiresonant TADF materials: triggering the reverse intersystem crossing to alleviate the efficiency roll-off in OLEDs

Triplet dynamics reveal loss pathways in multi-resonance thermally activated delayed fluorescence emitters

Multi-resonance thermally activated delayed fluorescence (MR-TADF) materials are of interest for light-emitting applications due to their narrow emission bandwidths and high photoluminescence quantum yields. Whilst there have been numerous examples of multi-resonance molecules exhibiting efficient TADF, the photophysics and mechanism of TADF in multi-resonance emitters have not been investigated to the same extent as the more conventional spatially separated donor-acceptor TADF materials, limiting the development of MR-TADF devices. Here we study the photophysics of a multi-resonance TADF material, OQAO(mes)2, using transient absorption spectroscopy to spectrally resolve the triplet population(s). We identify multiple triplet populations with distinct spectral contributions, and resolve the dynamics between them. Unlike conventional donor-acceptor TADF materials that have previously been studied, we find these triplet states are not formed in equilibrium, instead exhibiting a slow evolution from a high-energy triplet to a low-energy triplet. Delayed fluorescence predominantly reflects the lifetime of the high-energy triplet state, indicating that the formation of the low-energy triplet is a loss pathway for TADF. We also find that greater amounts of the low-energy triplet are formed in a higher dielectric environment, which leads to less delayed fluorescence. These triplet dynamics have significant implications for TADF in devices, as depending on the identity of the triplet formed by electrical excitation, there will either be a significant barrier to TADF, or a competing nonradiative decay pathway.

ΔDFT Predicts Inverted Singlet-Triplet Gaps with Chemical Accuracy at a Fraction of the Cost of Wave Function-Based Approaches

Efficient OLEDs need to quickly convert singlet and triplet excitons into photons. Molecules with an inverted singlet-triplet energy gap (INVEST) are promising candidates for this task. However, typical INVEST molecules have drawbacks like too low oscillator strengths and excitation energies. High-throughput screening could identify suitable INVEST molecules, but existing methods are problematic: The workhorse method TD-DFT cannot reproduce gap inversion, while wave function-based methods are too slow. This study proposes a state-specific method based on unrestricted Kohn-Sham DFT with common hybrid functionals. Tuned on the new INVEST15 benchmark set, this method achieves an error of less than 1 kcal/mol, which is traced back to error cancellation between spin contamination and dynamic correlation. Applied to the larger and structurally diverse NAH159 set in a black-box fashion, the method maintains a small error (1.2 kcal/mol) and accurately predicts gap signs in 83% of cases, confirming its robustness and suitability for screening workflows.

Biomimetic Exploration and Reflection on Switchable Coordination and Narrow-Band Electrofluorochromic Devices

Electrofluorochromic (EFC) materials and devices with controllable fluorescence properties show great application potential in advanced anticounterfeiting, information storage and display. However, the low color purity caused by the broad emission spectra and underperforming switching time of the existing EFC materials limit their application. Through biomimetic exploration and the study of reversible electrochemical responsive coordination reactions, boron-nitrogen embedded polyaromatics (B,N-PAHs) with narrow-band emission and high color purity have been successfully integrated into EFC systems, which also help to better understand the role of boron in biological activity. The EFC device achieve good performance containing quenching efficiency greater than 90% within short switching time (ton: 0.6 s, toff: 2.4 s), and nearly no performance change after 200 cycles test. Three primary color (red, green, and blue) EFC devices are successfully prepared. In addition, new phenomena are obtained and discussed in this biomimetic exploration of related boron reactions. The success and harvest of this exploration are expected to provide new ideas for optimizing properties and broadening applications of EFC materials. Moreover, it may provide ideas and reference significance for further exploring and understanding the function of boron compounds in biological systems.

Unveiling the photophysical and excited state properties of multi-resonant OLED emitters using combined DFT and CCSD method

Multi-resonance thermally-activated delayed fluorescence (MR-TADF) is predominantly observed in organoboron heteroatom-embedded molecules, featuring enhanced performance in organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) with high color purity, chemical stability, and excellent photoluminescence quantum yields. However, predicting the impact of any chemical change remains a challenge. Computational methods including density functional theory (DFT) still require accurate descriptions of photophysical properties of MR-TADF emitters. To circumvent this drawback, we explored recent investigations on the CzBX (Cz = carbazole, X = O, S, or Se) molecule as a central building block. We constructed a series of MR-TADF molecules by controlling chalcogen atom embedding, employing a combined approach of DFT and coupled-cluster (CCSD) methods. Our predicted results for MR-TADF emitter molecules align with the reported experimental data in the literature. The variation in the positions of chalcogen atoms embedded within the CzBX2X framework imparts unique photophysical properties.

Highly efficient pure-blue organic light-emitting diodes based on rationally designed heterocyclic phenophosphazinine-containing emitters

Multi-resonance thermally activated delayed fluorophores have been actively studied for high-resolution photonic applications due to their exceptional color purity. However, these compounds encounter challenges associated with the inefficient spin-flip process, compromising device performance. Herein, we report two pure-blue emitters based on an organoboron multi-resonance core, incorporating a conformationally flexible donor, 10-phenyl-5H-phenophosphazinine 10-oxide (or sulfide). This design concept selectively modifies the orbital type of high-lying excited states to a charge transfer configuration while simultaneously providing the necessary conformational freedom to enhance the density of excited states without sacrificing color purity. We show that the different embedded phosphorus motifs (phosphine oxide/sulfide) of the donor can finely tune the electronic structure and conformational freedom, resulting in an accelerated spin-flip process through intense spin-vibronic coupling, achieving over a 20-fold increase in the reverse intersystem crossing rate compared to the parent multi-resonance emitter. Utilizing these emitters, we achieve high-performance pure-blue organic light-emitting diodes, showcasing a top-tier external quantum efficiency of 37.6% with reduced efficiency roll-offs. This proposed strategy not only challenges the conventional notion that flexible electron-donors are undesirable for constructing narrowband emitters but also offer a pathway for designing efficient narrow-spectrum blue organic light-emitting diodes.

Spirobifluorene-fused strategy enables pure-green multiple resonance emitters with low efficiency roll-off

Herein, we present a molecular design strategy centered on the spiroannulation of the MR-core skeleton to fabricate green MR-emitters and reduce device efficiency roll-off. Fusing 9,9'-spirobifluorene into the central framework of MR-emitters facilitates the distribution of the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) across the spiro units, leading to a red-shifted emission and giving rise to a pure-green MR-emitter (DPhCz-SFBN) with the Commission Internationale de l'Eclairage (CIE) coordinates of [0.16, 0.74] in toluene solution, closely matching the BT.2020 standard for green. Additionally, the resultant highly twisted hetero[6]helicene conformation and a nearly perpendicular conformation of spirocycle structure effectively minimize close π-π stacking interactions among the MR-emitting cores, thereby reducing exciton quenching. Consequently, organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) based on DPhCz-SFBN exhibit a high maximum quantum efficiency (EQEmax) of 32.8% with low efficiency roll-off, maintaining an EQE of 23.2% at a practical luminance level of 5000 cd m-2.

Efficient Deep-Blue Multiple-Resonance Emitters Based on Azepine-Decorated ν-DABNA for CIEy below 0.06

Ultrapure deep-blue emitters are in high demand for organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Although color coordinates serve as straightforward parameters for assessing color purity, precise control over the maximum wavelength and full-width at half-maximum is necessary to optimize OLED performance, including luminance efficiency and luminous efficacy. Multiple-resonance (MR) emitters are promising candidates for achieving ideal luminescence properties; consequently, a wide variety of MR frameworks have been developed. However, most of these emitters experience a wavelength displacement from the ideal color, which limits their practical applicability. Therefore, a molecular design that is compatible with MR emitters for modulating their energy levels and color output is particularly valuable. Here, it is demonstrated that the azepine donor unit induces an appropriate blue-shift in the emission maximum while maintaining efficient MR characteristics, including high photoluminescence quantum yield, narrow emission, and a fast reverse intersystem crossing rate. OLEDs using newly developed MR emitters based on the ν-DABNA framework simultaneously exhibit a high quantum efficiency of ≈30%, luminous efficacy of ≈20 lm W-1, exceptional color purity with Commission Internationale de l'Éclairage coordinates as low as (0.14, 0.06), and notably high operational stability. These results demonstrate unprecedentedly high levels compared with those observed in previously reported deep-blue emitters.

A diphenylphosphine oxide decorated multi-resonance TADF emitter for narrowband green electroluminescence with an EQE of 32.4

A new narrowband thermally activated delayed fluorescence emitter, PhCzBN-PO, was developed by incorporating the diphenylphosphine oxide (DPPO) group into a multi-resonance core. The unique properties of DPPO enabled PhCzBN-PO to achieve pure green emission and a nonplanar structure. The resulting electroluminescent devices achieved high external quantum efficiencies up to 32.4% with extremely low efficiency roll-off and pure-green emission with Commission Internationale de L'Eclairage (CIE) coordinates of (0.24, 0.67).

An electrochemically responsive B-O dynamic bond to switch photoluminescence of boron-nitrogen-doped polyaromatics

Boron-doped polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons exhibit excellent optical properties, and regulating their photophysical processes is a powerful strategy to understand the luminescence mechanism and develop new materials and applications. Herein, an electrochemically responsive B-O dynamic coordination bond is proposed, and used to regulate the photophysical processes of boron-nitrogen-doped polyaromatic hydrocarbons. The formation of the B-O coordination bond under a suitable voltage is confirmed by experiments and theoretical calculations, and B-O coordination bond can be broken back to the initial state under opposite voltage. The whole process is accompanied by reversible changes in photophysical properties. Further, electrofluorochromic devices are successfully prepared based on the above electrochemically responsive coordination bond. The success and harvest of this exploration are beneficial to understand the luminescence mechanism of boron-nitrogen-doped polyaromatic hydrocarbons, and provide ideas for design of dynamic covalent bonds and broaden material types and applications.

Ultrafast photophysics of an orange-red thermally activated delayed fluorescence emitter: the role of external structural restraint

The application of thermally activated delay fluorescence (TADF) emitters in the orange-red regime usually suffers from the fast non-radiative decay of emissive singlet states (kSNR), leading to low emitting efficiency in corresponding organic light-emitting diode (OLED) devices. Although kSNR has been quantitatively described by energy gap law, how ultrafast molecular motions are associated with the kSNR of TADF emitters remains largely unknown, which limits the development of new strategies for improving the emitting efficiency of corresponding OLED devices. In this work, we employed two commercial TADF emitters (TDBA-Ac and PzTDBA) as a model system and attempted to clarify the relationship between ultrafast excited-state structural relaxation (ES-SR) and kSNR. Spectroscopic and theoretical investigations indicated that S1/S0 ES-SR is directly associated with promoting vibrational modes, which are considerably involved in electronic-vibrational coupling through the Huang-Rhys factor, while kSNR is largely affected by the reorganization energy of the promoting modes. By restraining S1/S0 ES-SR in doping films, the kSNR of TADF emitters can be greatly reduced, resulting in high emitting efficiency. Therefore, by establishing the connection among S1/S0 ES-SR, promoting modes and kSNR of TADF emitters, our work clarified the key role of external structural restraint for achieving high emitting efficiency in TADF-based OLED devices.

Accelerating Intersystem Crossing in Multiresonance Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence Emitters via Long-Range Charge Transfer

Multiresonance thermally activated delayed fluorescence (MR-TADF) emitters are excellent candidates for high-performance organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) due to their narrowband emission properties. However, the inherent mechanism of regulating the rate of intersystem crossing (ISC) is ambiguous in certain MR-TADF skeletons. Herein, we propose a mechanism of accelerating ISC in B/S-based MR-TADF emitters by peripheral modifications of electron-donating groups (EDGs) without affecting the narrowband emission property. The long-range charge transfer (LRCT) stems from the introduced EDG leading to high-lying singlet and triplet excited states. The ISC process is accelerated by the enhanced spin-orbital coupling (SOC) between the singlet short-range charge transfer (SRCT) and triplet LRCT manifolds. Meanwhile, the narrowband emission derived from the MR-type SRCT state is well retained as expected in the peripherally modified MR-TADF emitters. This work reveals the regulation mechanism of photophysical properties by high-lying LRCT excited states and provides a significant theoretical basis for modulating the rate of ISC in the further design of MR-TADF materials.

Organoboron-based multiple-resonance emitters: synthesis, structure-property correlations, and prospects

Boron-based multiple-resonance (MR) emitters exhibit the advantages of narrowband emission, high absolute photoluminescence quantum yield, thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF), and sufficient stability during the operation of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Thus, such MR emitters have been widely applied as blue emitters in triplet-triplet-annihilation-driven fluorescent devices used in smartphones and televisions. Moreover, they hold great promise as TADF or terminal emitters in TADF-assisted fluorescence or phosphor-sensitised fluorescent OLEDs. Herein we comprehensively review organoboron-based MR emitters based on their synthetic strategies, clarify structure-photophysical property correlations, and provide design guidelines and future development prospects.

Alignment of Heptagonal Diimide and Triazine Enables Narrowband Pure-Blue Organic Light-Emitting Diodes with Low Efficiency Roll-Off

The endeavor to develop high-performance narrowband blue organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) with low efficiency roll-off represents an attractive challenge. Herein, we introduce a hetero-acceptor design strategy centered around the heptagonal diimide (BPI) building block to create an efficient thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) sensitizer. The alignment of a twisted BPI unit and a planar diphenyltriazine (TRZ) fragment imparts remarkable exciton dynamic properties to 26tCz-TRZBPI, including a fast radiative decay rate (kR ) of 1.0×107  s-1 and a swift reverse intersystem crossing rate (kRISC ) of 1.8×106  s-1 , complemented by a slow non-radiative decay rate (kNR ) of 6.0×103  s-1 . Consequently, 26tCz-TRZBPI facilitates the fabrication of high-performance narrowband pure-blue TADF-sensitized fluorescence OLEDs (TSF-OLEDs) with a maximum external quantum efficiency (EQEmax ) of 24.3 % and low efficiency roll-off even at a high brightness level of 10000 cd m-2 (EQE10000 : 16.8 %). This showcases a record-breaking external quantum efficiency at a high luminance level of 10000 cd m-2 for narrowband blue TSF-OLEDs.

Neoteric Advances in Oxygen Bridged Triaryl Boron-based Delayed Fluorescent Materials for Organic Light Emitting Diodes

Since their first demonstration, thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) materials have been emerged as the most promising emitters because of their promising applications in optoelectronics, typified by organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). In which, the rigid oxygen bridged boron acceptor-featured (DOBNA) emitters have gained tremendous impetus for OLEDs, which is ascribed to their excellent external quantum efficiency (EQE). However, these materials often displayed severe efficiency roll-off and poor operational stability. Therefore, there needs to be a comprehensive understanding of the aspect of the molecular design and structure-property relationship. To the best of our knowledge, there is no detailed review on the structure-function outlook of DOBNA-based emitters emphasizing the effect of the nature of donor units, their number density, and substitution pattern on the physicochemical properties, excited state dynamics and OLED performance were reported. To fill this gap, herein we presented the recent advancements in DOBNA-based acceptor featured TADF materials by classifying them into several subgroups based on the molecular design i. e. donor-acceptor (D-A), D-A-D, A-D-A, and multi-resonant TADF (MR-TADF) emitters. The detailed design concepts, along with their respective physicochemical and OLED performances were summarized. Finally, the prospective of this class of materials in forthcoming OLED displays is also discussed.

A π-extended tercarbazole-core multi-resonance delayed fluorescence emitter exhibiting efficient narrowband yellow electroluminescence

Herein, a simple and versatile molecular design for long-wavelength (>550 nm) multi-resonance thermally activated delayed fluoresence emitters is reported. Extending a fully fused polycyclic π-system with an additional para-N-π-N conjugation induces narrowband bright-yellow photoluminescence and electroluminescence emissions at ∼560 nm.

Forthcoming hyperfluorescence display technology: relevant factors to achieve high-performance stable organic light emitting diodes

Over the decade, there have been developments in purely organic thermally activated delayed fluorescent (TADF) materials for organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). However, achieving narrow full width at half maximum (FWHM) and high external quantum efficiency (EQE) is crucial for real display industries. To overcome these hurdles, hyperfluorescence (HF) technology was proposed for next-generation OLEDs. In this technology, the TADF material was considered a sensitizing host, the so-called TADF sensitized host (TSH), for use of triplet excitons via the reverse intersystem crossing (RISC) pathway. Since most of the TADF materials show bipolar characteristics, electrically generated singlet and triplet exciton energies can be transported to the final fluorescent emitter (FE) through Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) rather than Dexter energy transfer (DET). This mechanism is possible from the S₁ state of the TSH to the S₁ state of the final fluorescent dopant (FD) as a long-range energy transfer. Considering this, some reports are available based on hyperfluorescence OLEDs, but the detailed analysis for highly efficient and stable devices for commercialization was unclear. So herein, we reviewed the relevant factors based on recent advancements to build a highly efficient and stable hyperfluorescence system. The factors include an energy transfer mechanism based on spectral overlapping, TSH requirements, electroluminescence study based on exciplex and polarity system, shielding effect, DET suppression, and FD orientation. Furthermore, the outlook and future positives with new directions were discussed to build high-performance OLEDs.