Recent advances in light-emitting electrochemical cells

Costa, Rubén D.; Ortí, Enrique; Bolink, Henk J.

doi:10.1351/PAC-CON-11-07-20

Pure Appl. Chem., 2011, Vol. 83, No. 12, pp. 2115-2128

http://dx.doi.org/10.1351/PAC-CON-11-07-20

Published online 2011-10-31

Recent advances in light-emitting electrochemical cells*

Rubén D. Costa^1,2*, Enrique Ortí² and Henk J. Bolink²

¹ Current address: Department of Chemistry and Pharmacy and Interdisciplinary Center for Molecular Materials (ICMM), Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Egerlandstrasse 3, 91058 Erlangen, Germany
² Instituto de Ciencia Molecular, Universidad de Valencia, 46980 Paterna (Valencia), Spain

Abstract: Light-emitting electrochemical cells (LECs) are solution-processable thin-film electroluminescent devices consisting of a luminescent material in an ionic environment. The simplest type of LEC is based on only one material, ionic transition-metal complexes (iTMCs). These materials are of interest for different scientific fields such as chemistry, physics, and technology as selected chemical modifications of iTMCs resulted in crucial breakthroughs for the performance of LECs. This short review highlights the different strategies used to design these compounds with the aim to enhance the performances of LECs.

*Pure Appl. Chem. 83, 2115–2212 (2011). A collection of invited, peer-reviewed articles by the winners of the 2011 IUPAC Prize for Young Chemists.