Osram achieves 87 lm/w for white OLED lighting panel

Researchers at Osram have achieved 87 lm/W for a white OLED panel. The OLED panel laboratory sample was prepared using a "pure" thin-film approach. The OLED panel used a special injection electrode that helps to distribute the current evenly across the active surface of the panel. This produces an even distribution of light over the whole panel. As the panel does not use any additional electrode patterning the final product is more aesthetic pleasing.

The panel was operated at a brightness of 1,000 cd/m2 and a colour temperature of approximately 4,000 K. The laboratory sample also achieved almost 75 lm/W when operated at a brightness of 5,000 cd/m2. Measurements where performed under application-oriented conditions in an integrating sphere - without macro extractors (lenses) to optimise the results.

According to Osram the organic functional material used to fabricate the OLED panel have already been tested in pilot manufacturing, and have lifetimes that are appropriate for commercial products. Plans are already underway on finalising product details and transferring to production.

Thomas Dobbertin, head of OLED technology at Osram, said “We have made a key breakthrough with the laboratory sample. For the first time we have managed to obtain such high efficiency whilst retaining both aesthetic and technological characteristics such as lifetime, robustness and extreme flatness in a thin-film approach – in other words, we have given the panel the characteristics that are also central for future series production.”

OLED research at OSRAM is funded via the TOPAS 2012 project of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (reference no. 13N10474). The focus of the research work of TOPAS 2012 is upon the development of OLED as the lighting of the future. "With our new peak value we have taken a major step towards our goal of achieving 100 lm/W," says Thomas Dobbertin.



Source: via OSRAM