New hope in the search for a solution to rapidly ageing blue OLEDs and burn-in

There is hope for blue OLEDs that are both easy to produce and durable, as Display Daily reports. Blue light, essential for RGB displays, is still the Achilles heel of OLED display technology. But other display technologies such as the not-yet-market-ready true QLED technology (not to be confused with QLED marketing), which actually uses LCD technology, also have great difficulties with blue.

If the problem of blue OLEDs were solved, OLED displays could theoretically last up to 100 years. At least when considering the diodes, as other components may of course fail sooner. To date, all kinds of tricks have been employed in attempts to ensure display longevity, such as making blue OLED pixels larger.

A team from the University of Cambridge now claims to have found a solution, which of course still has to prove itself. The team has developed diodes that can emit narrow-band blue. To this end, the light-relevant part is encapsulated. The newly designed molecule promises greater stability and efficiency while reducing complexity, which should result in greater longevity overall.

The narrow-band emission of blue is also better suited to displays because it ensures higher color purity, according to Display Daily. The publication expects that the research results will help with the next generation of OLEDs. Hence, it will still be a while before the improved technology makes it into televisions, smartphones or PC monitors.

Research is constantly being carried out on blue OLED technology to improve display longevity. In 2022, for example, new blue PHOLEDs were presented at Display Week. The industry expects the improvements from the then-conducted research to become reality this year.