Synthesis and characterization of a distyrylbenzene derivative for use in organic electroluminescent devices

Abstract

New materials have been synthesized by attaching long alkyl chains to the basic distyrylbenzene chromophore. The most promising material, 4,4″-di(dodecyloxy)distyrylbenzene, has been characterized, and vacuum-deposited films have been used as the emitting layer in organic electroluminescent (EL) cells. Bright blue emission, with an emission maximum at 482 nm and a maximum luminance of over 50 cd m^–2, has been obtained from such devices. When deposited as Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) films, it is hoped that these materials will provide interesting new insight into the effect of molecular orientation in organic EL devices.