OSRAM delivers first OLED milestone in DOE lighting program
April 12, 2005, San Jose, CA--Osram Opto Semiconductors has reached the first milestone in its three-year white organic-light-emitting-diode (OLED) project, funded by a $4.65 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).
The 2004 grant was issued to research the potential of white OLEDs to save energy in commercial and residential lighting applications. Osram's first-year deliverable is an advanced prototype light source based on two 2- x 3-in. white-light-emitting tiles. The grant is funding the development, fabrication, and characterization of a 12- x 20-in. OLED white-light prototype. Osram is matching the DOE's $4.65 million for a project total of $9.3 million.
The advanced white-light prototype is based on multiple discrete 2- x 3-in. white-light devices fabricated on glass substrates. Osram's first-year deliverable is a prototype light source in which each tile in the module has a luminous efficacy of 7 lm/W and a color-rendering index (CRI) of about 80. The prototype operates at an average luminance of 250 nits. At the program's end, Osram will produce a color-balanced OLED white-light source with a luminous efficacy of 40 lm/W at 800 nits and an operating half-life of 3,000 h.
Osram's materials and device organization, in concert with the company's processing group, is working closely with major polymer materials suppliers and various academic institutions to develop the polymer emissive technology needed to meet the DOE project's performance milestones. The company's product development team is additionally creating the white-lighting module, including the electronic control, for powering the lighting source. The lighting module will be field-tested by commercial lighting groups within Osram.
The second milestone, scheduled for February 2006, is an advanced white-light prototype based on eight discrete 2- x 3-in. white-light devices fabricated on glass substrates. The OLED white-light source will have a luminous efficacy of 20 lm/W at 400 nits and an operating half-life of 3,000 hours. The program will conclude in February 2007 with the delivery of a white-light prototype based on 32 tiles with the specifications mentioned above.
In 2004, Osram became a member of the Organic LEDs for Lighting Applications (OLLA) consortium, a 24-member organization comprising European companies and research establishments. This consortium will receive more than $15 million from a European government commission to research high-brightness, high-efficiency white OLEDs and demonstrate their use in general lighting applications. Osram is also a member of the Next Generation Lighting Industry (NGLI) Alliance, a U.S. organization, sponsored by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), to foster a government/industry partnership that accelerates the technical foundation and commercialization of solid-state-lighting systems.