No question about it: Digital displays have been getting thinner, brighter and more energy-efficient. They will soon take another step in all those directions owing to a discovery by Michael G. Helander and Zhibin Wang, two PhD candidates working with Prof. Zheng-Hong Lu of the Materials Science & Engineering Department of the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering.

After applying a cleansing solution including chlorine to a sheet of indium tin oxide, the substance used to make flat-panel displays, the graduate students noticed a brighter output. It was an important breakthrough because the imbedded diodes were OLEDs, organic light-emitting diodes, a type for which a great future has long been predicted if certain obstacles can be overcome.

U of T research revealed that treatment with a layer of atomic chlorine permits the use of only two OLEDs (one transparent, the other infused with an organic colour source, such as a dye) where several energy-wasting diodes needed to be stacked before.

“With OLEDs, the major challenge has always been brightness,” explains Lu, who is the Canada Research Chair (Tier I) in Organic Optoelectronics. “That’s why this technology is a major step forward. We’ve achieved high brightness at a high efficiency.”

That higher efficiency will affect screens as small as those in cellphones and large as those on billboards – to say nothing of flexible screens that can be rolled up and folded.

There is also a potential payoff and the manufacturing level. Fewer parts mean fewer product flaws.

“Reducing the number of manufacturing steps and equipment ultimately cuts down on the costs associated with setting up a production line,” says Lu.

Not surprisingly, the patented chlorine technology has attracted expressions of interest from industry partners. Lu expects to see commercial applications of chlorine-treated OLEDs within five years.

To read a full report on this U of T discovery, visit Science magazine.