To improve current multiphase white light emitting diodes (WLEDs), a novel series of five complexes consisting of one binary and four ternary complexes that emitted cool white light was successfully synthesized using a chelating tetradentate ligand and auxiliary ligands, i.e. 5,6-dimethyl-1,10-phenanthroline, 1,10-phenanthroline, 4,4'-dimethyl-2,2'-bipyridyl, and 2,2'-bipyridyl. The series was examined structurally using elemental analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, energy dispersive X-ray analysis, ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy, and proton nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. These complexes had the appropriate thermal stability required for the generation of white organic LEDs (WOLEDs). Dysprosium (III) (Dy3+ ) ion complexes demonstrated the characteristic emission peaks of blue colour at 482 nm and yellow colour at 572 nm, respectively, when excited using near ultraviolet light. Band gap, refractive index, and decay lifetime of the optimized samples were recorded as 2.68 eV, 2.12, and 1.601 ms, respectively. Correlated colour temperature value (7875 K), Commission International de l'Eclairage coordinates (0.300, 0.294), and colour purity (21.04 × 10-2 ) of the optimized complex were near to those of white illuminants as defined by the National Television System Committee. These complexes had promise as commercial LEDs for the advanced optoelectronics devices, especially as WOLEDs for illumination applications.
Keywords: WOLED; dysprosium; luminescence; spectral analysis; β-ketoamide tetradentate ligand.
© 2021 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.