Transparent organic upconversion devices for near-infrared sensing

Abstract

Transparent organic upconversion devices are shown in a night-vision demonstration of a real object under near-infrared (NIR) illumination in the dark. An extraordinarily high current gain - reflecting the on-off switching effect - greater than 15 000 at a driving voltage of 3 V is demonstrated, indicating the high sensitivity to NIR light and potential of using the proposed upconverter in practical applications. A maximum luminance exceeding 1500 cd m(-2) at 7 V is achieved. Unlike previous studies, where 2D aperture projection is reported, the current study shows 3D images of real objects under NIR illumination in the dark.

Keywords: near-infrared; organic electronics; sensing; transparent materials; upconversion.