https://doi.org/10.1051/epjap/2010102
Ultra high barrier materials for encapsulation of flexible organic electronics
1
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Physics, Laboratory for Thin Films – Nanosystems and Nanometrology, 54124 Thessaloniki, Greece
2
Fraunhofer-Institut für Silicatforschung (ISC), 97082 Würzburg, Germany
3
Fraunhofer-Institut für Verfahrenstechnik und Verpackung (IVV), Freising, Germany
4
Alcan Technology & Management AG, Neuhausen, Switzerland
Corresponding author: logot@auth.gr
Received:
12
October
2009
Revised:
25
May
2010
Accepted:
7
June
2010
Published online:
2
September
2010
The encapsulation of the active layers (organic semiconductors, electrodes,
transparent conductive oxides, etc.) of organic electronic devices developed
onto flexible polymeric substrates is one of the most challenging issues in
the rapidly emerging area of organic electronics. The importance for the
protection of the active layers arises from the fact that these are very
sensitive when they are subjected to the atmosphere, since the permeation of
the atmosphere's water vapour (H2O) and oxygen (O
gases induces
corrosion effects, film delamination and finally, failure of the organic
electronic device. In addition, the encapsulation layers contribute to the
long-term stability of the whole device enabling its use in outdoor
environments (e.g. in the case of flexible photovoltaic cells-OPVs). A
promising approach for the encapsulation of flexible organic electronics
includes the development of multilayers that consist of hybrid polymer
materials and inorganic layers onto flexible polymeric substrates, such as
poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET). This approach leads to a significant
improvement of the barrier performance of the whole structure, due to the
synergetic effect of the confinement of the permeation to the defect zones
of the inorganic layer, and the formation of chemical bonds between the
hybrid polymer and the inorganic layer. The knowledge of their optical
properties and their correlation with their barrier performance are of major
importance since it will contribute towards the optimization of their
functionality. In this work, we provide an overview on the results
concerning the use of hybrid polymers as ultra high barrier materials and
moreover we discuss on the effect of inclusion of SiO2 nano-particles
on their optical properties and barrier performance.
© EDP Sciences, 2010
