Universal Display Awarded U.S. DOE SBIR Phase I Grant for White OLED Lighting

Universal Display Corporation announced that the company has been awarded a $149,997 Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I program from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

Under a program titled “Novel Low Cost Single Layer Outcoupling Solution for OLED Lighting,” the company will evaluate and demonstrate thin form factor outcoupling techniques to improve the energy-efficiency and cost-effectiveness of white OLED lighting panels.

Outcoupling techniques increase the amount of light that is emitted from an OLED lighting panel. To date, no one has demonstrated an approach to achieve desired extraction efficiency targets in a thin form factor and cost-effective manner. The company’s novel single layer approach has the potential to increase the light extraction by greater than a factor of two while being cost-effective and compatible with low-cost OLED manufacturing techniques.

“Our UniversalPHOLED technology and materials play a critical role in making white OLEDs an important energy-saving lighting technology by increasing the amount of electrical energy that is converted into light by a factor of four. A key remaining challenge has been to develop a cost-effective technique to double the amount of that light that emits through the surface of the OLED panel,” said Steven V. Abramson, president and CEO of Universal Display. “Thanks to the ongoing support of the U.S. Department of Energy, our team plans to demonstrate a novel approach to achieve this target and help accelerate the commercialization of energy-efficient and cost-effective white OLED lighting panels. With novel thin and lightweight form factors, energy-efficient white OLED lighting may create a myriad of opportunities for new product designs and lighting applications and play a meaningful role in reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions in the U.S. and around the world.”

The DOE has made a long-term commitment to the development and introduction of energy-efficient, solid-state white lighting. The use of UniversalPHOLED technology and materials has been essential to demonstrating white OLED lighting panels that meet the DOE’s targets. The company is also at the forefront of developing complementary technologies including light extraction, thin-film encapsulation and flexible OLED technologies. In combination, these technologies may open up a vast array of novel lighting applications.