Optimizing the Intralayer and Interlayer Compatibility for High-Efficiency Blue Thermally Activated Delayed Fluorescence Diodes

A series of phosphine oxide hosts, 4,6-bis(diphenylphosphoryl) dibenzothiophene (DBTDPO) and 4- diphenylphosphoryldibenzothiophene (DBTSPO), and electron transporting materials (ETM), 2-(diphenylphosphoryl)dibenzothiophene sulfone (2DBSOSPO), 3-(diphenylphosphoryl)dibenzothiophene sulfone (3DBSOSPO) and 4-(diphenylphosphoryl)dibenzothiophene sulfone (4DBSOSPO) were developed to support blue thermally activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) devices with high performance through optimizing intralayer and interlayer compatibility of emissive layers. On the basis of the triplet energy of ~3.0 eV for the hosts and ETMs, excitons can be effectively confined on DMAC-DPS. Compared to DBTSPO, DBTDPO can support the excellent distribution uniformity to blue TADF dye bis[4-(9,9-dimethyl–9,10-dihydroacridine) phenyl] sulfone (DMAC-DPS), owing to their configuration similarity; while 3DBSOSPO and 4DBSOSPO are superior in compatibility with the hosts due to the similar molecular polarity or configuration. Through adjusting the molecular configuration, the electrical performance of ETMs can be feasibly tuned, including the excellent electron mobility (μ(e)) by the order of 10(−3) cm(2) V(−1) s(−1). As the result, DBTDPO and 4DBSOSPO endowed their four-layer blue TADF devices with the maximum current efficiency of 33.5 cd A(−1) and the maximum external quantum efficiency more than 17%, which are impressive among the best blue TADF devices. It is showed that intralayer compatibility determines the maximum efficiencies, while interlayer compatibility influences efficiency stability.