Printed Transparent Electrodes for Flexible OLEDs and Solar Cells

After three years, the jointly funded project IMAGE (innovation printable electrode materials for high performance lighting devices and organic solar cells) has been successfully completed by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the French Agence Nationale de la Recherche.

As a result, the project partners Carnot MIB from Bordeaux (project leaded by LCPO) and Fraunhofer COMEDD from Dresden demonstrated novel transparent electrodes, which are arranged on a backing film and enable flexible electronic components. The performance of these electrodes, which are made up of organic materials, was demonstrated by using flexible OLED and organic solar cells.

The objective of IMAGE was the development of innovative printable, transparent electrode materials for high-efficiency organic light-emitting diodes and solar cells. This should be cost-effective, conductive, transparent, flexible, compatible and capable of being integrated in OLED or organic solar cells. The electrodes developed in IMAGE should replace conventional transparent metal oxides, such as indium tin oxide (ITO), which are less flexible and less cost effective.

“We were able to construct the electrodes very thin, transparent and flexible and to integrate them in our processes,” said Dr. Olaf R. Hild, business unit manager at Fraunhofer COMEDD.

Fraunhofer COMEDD is now in a position to manufacture flexible organic devices such as OLED lighting films, organic solar cells or sensors on film according to customer requirements.

The partners from MIB were responsible for the development of suitable chemical compositions and solutions for the production of transparent organic electrodes. Fraunhofer COMEDD developed the structuring procedures and integrated OLED and organic solar cells in the novel electrodes and developed encapsulation technologies. Arkema and Tridonic provided advisory support to the project consortium.