There is indeed a cool breakthrough in OLED efficiency, but we hear about the "breakthroughs" so often that we kind of want to say, "Bring it already!" Despite the mini fit of frustration and sarcasm, we can't deny a bit of giddiness behind the possibility that a new technology could reduce OLED energy consumption by (a super duper) 75%.
According to OLED Info, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) has figured out a way to use surface plasmon. Brace yourself for a little geek-speak. Surface plasmon is, essentially, fluctuation in the electron density at the boundary of two materials. The interaction between the light emitting layer in OLEDs and surface plasmons affect efficiency. So, researchers tweaked the process and were able to squeeze out a 75% higher efficiency rate without sacrificing the intensity of the lighting.
Researchers expect the new findings will go far in improving OLED technologies, especially for flexible OLEDs. Indeed, if they keep making improvements at this rate, next thing we know we'll be adding power to the grid every time we flip on an OLED device.
