| abstract |
Disclosed are protected OLED devices comprising (a) a substrate; (b) an active region positioned on the substrate, wherein the active region comprises an anode layer, a cathode layer and a light-emitting layer disposed between the anode layer and the cathode layer; (c) a composite barrier layer disposed over the active region and/or over a surface of the substrate, the composite barrier layer comprising an alternating series of one or more polymeric planarizing sublayers and one or more high-density sublayers; and, (d) a thin carbon layer disposed between at least one polymeric planarizing sublayer and a region of the OLED device that is selected from the group consisting of the substrate, an adjacent high-density sublayer, and the active region. The composite barrier layer is provided to protect the active region of the OLED device from environmental elements such as oxygen and moisture. The thin carbon layer is provided to improve adhesion between adjacent layers. In other embodiments, the present invention provides an OLED device in which a surface of the substrate and/or a surface of a polymeric planarizing sublayer has been roughened by a plasma or chemical etching treatment to improve adhesion thereto. |