topics & Technologies
In our projects, we are working primarily on the following topics:
OLEDs - THE LIGHT FROM THE SURFACE
Organic Light Emitting Diodes
In the light of sustainable and economically responsible use of energy, energy saving is of particular importance. In order to facilitate the change to using energy saving light sources, new energy efficient and affordable light sources need to be made available for the end consumer. Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) belong to them.
Not only do OLEDs offer opportunities to save energy, but, thanks to their innovative qualities, they also open up new possibilities of room lighting in the private and professional sphere.
Technology
OLEDs are ultra flat and flexible, consist of thin layers of organic semiconductor materials and can generate light in almost any color. Up to now, they were primarily used in displays of small mobile devices, however, they are increasingly moving into the spotlight of international research and development institutions.
One reason for that is the special light quality of OLEDs, which is very suitable for glare-free and diffuse surface lighting of rooms. Due to their high spectral homogeneity, they enable lighting of objects at high color fidelity, which is appreciated especially by museums and galleries. Furthermore, OLEDs allow for a varied setting of ambient light and the established dimming of light intensity.
Even when it comes to energy efficiency, these new light sources can compete with compact energy saving lamps and have proven their potential within lab experiments to reach the performance of gas discharge lamps and LED in the midterm.
In order to establish this avant-garde technology on the lighting market, the development of procedures for low cost mass production on large surfaces will be necessary, apart from high light quality and energy efficiency.
Involvement
VON ARDENNE is taking part in the processing of OLEDs on flexible Materials within the R2Flex project of the German Ministry of Education and Research. We are working on the development of scalable OLED production technologies on flexible substrates such as metal strip and polymer films in cooperation with industrial partners and research institutions.
Our pilot coating equipment R2Flex300 transfers the layer system technology that was developed by our partners by roll-to-roll coating on 300 mm wide metal strips. It is our aim to produce highly efficient white OLEDs that are suitable for lighting purposes.
Linear organic evaporators are used as technological key components for the deposition of OLED materials.
