2011: the year of OLED lighting?

Recent developments and announcements from major developers of organic electroluminescence (OLED) technology seem to be pointing towards the conclusion that 2011 will be the year where the first commercial OLED lighting applications will appear on the market.

Prototypes have been demonstrated by several companies by now, such as NEC, OSRAM OS, Matsushita Electric Works and Koizumi Lighting technology. Some of the prototypes are similar to conventional lighting elements, such as beautifully crafted desktop lamps, and others, demonstrating the versatility of using OLED technology, are more intricately designed concepts.

General Electric has also demonstrated the ability to use printing technologies to manufacture OLED panels on a roll-to-roll process and its optimisation over the next few years will see the reductions in cost that are so inadvertently intertwined with the successful introduction of OLED products in the market. Konica Minolta is working closely with General Electric in the development of its lighting products.

Konica Minolta has also licensed UDC’s proprietary phosphorescent OLED technology and is integrating it into its white OLED lighting products. The incorporation of the core competencies of the two companies into the final products will strengthen the competitiveness of the resulting products and lead to their accelerated commercialisation.

The design possibilities become even more varied as flexible OLED technology is developed. Limitations due to low lifetime are a big challenge at the moment and the issue is being addressed by several companies and research institutes, in order to be able to achieve lifetimes that would make a viable commercial product. Once that hurdle is overcome, many more applications are envisaged.

The Research Institute for Organic Electronics (RIOE) in Japan is aiming to help with the industrialisation and commercialisation of OLED technology by tackling issues such as:

• Higher efficiency (comparable to fluorescent lighting) and durability at high power input. According to the RIOE, in order for OLED lighting to be used as a main lighting source, its luminance should reach 50000 cd/m².
• Lower cost panel production.
• Development of new applications in which organic electroluminescence can maintain a competitive advantage against other technologies.

Examples of potential applications include:

• Illuminating room switches, desk drawers, staircases
• Illuminating accessories (eg, toothbrushes, bags)
• Underwater lighting
• Interior lighting for vehicles

Together with the development of OLEDs for displays, a push that’s mostly supported by Samsung and Sony who already have their OLED television on sale, the next few years will see companies overcoming barriers and issues that are currently inhibiting a faster growth. Once that happens, OLEDs have the potential to penetrate many aspects of everyday life. And soon after, glow-in-the-dark windows and illuminating ceilings will be a ubiquitous reality.

*Dr Harry Zervos, technical consultant, IDTechEx.