According to a study published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology on January 15, 2025, a team of Chinese scientists led by Professor Wu Yucheng of the Institute of Physical and Chemical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, has developed a new technology for remote epitaxial growth of continuous crystalline perovskite thin films .
Micro-light-emitting diodes (microLEDs) are emerging as the next-generation display technology for wearable technology, augmented and virtual reality, and optical communications. Metal halide perovskites are a promising option for vibrant LED displays due to their high potential in efficient light emission, long-distance carrier transport, and scalable manufacturing.
However, there are significant challenges in fabricating thin-film perovskites for micro-LED displays. For example, thin-film perovskites emit non-uniform light and photolithography can lead to surface instabilities. For these reasons, a solution is needed to make thin-film perovskites compatible with micro-LEDs.
Researchers have made great strides in overcoming these difficulties.
Researchers have devised a new method to grow continuous crystalline perovskite thin films remotely, an advance that allows for perfect integration into ultra-high resolution microLEDs with pixels smaller than 5 μm.
The results of this study reveal a long-range epitaxial growth process using graphene interlayers to form continuous crystalline perovskite thin films over an area of 4 cm2 . The method effectively eliminates grain boundaries and results in a pure out-of-plane crystallographic orientation.
Using single-crystal, single-layer perovskite thin films, the researchers achieved exceptional results for microLEDs, including 16.1% luminous efficiency, 4 × 105 cd m -2 brightness
Standalone perovskites can be easily integrated into off-the-shelf electronics platforms, allowing independent dynamic control of each pixel, a feature that can be used in both still and moving images.
This technology enables the creation of full-color microLED displays by combining multiple perovskite components, and also enables the development of ultra-compact photonic devices by monolithically integrating perovskite films with nanophotonic structures such as photonic crystals and resonant metasurfaces.
The research was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Youth Innovation Promotion Association of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Ministry of Science and Technology of China, among others.
Journal References:
Yuan, M., et. al. (2024) Remote epitaxial perovskite crystals for ultra-high resolution micro-LED displays. Nature Nanotechnology . doi.org/10.1038/s41565-024-01841-9
sauce:
Chinese Academy of Sciences
