Light-Emitting Thin Films. There is currently strong academic and industrial engineering research interest in developing organic light-emitting devices for such applications as flat panel displays and backlights for watches. Light-emitting thin films provide an excellent opportunity to learn about principles of electrochemistry, spectroscopy, microscopic structure of the solid state, basic circuits, and engineering design. The article “Using Organic Light-Emitting Electrochemical Thin-Film Devices To Teach Materials Science” by Hannah Sevian, Sean Müller, Hartmut Rudmann, and Michael F. Rubner describes investigations in which students make light-emitting devices by spin coating a thin film containing ruthenium(II) complex ions onto a glass slide. The slide is then coated with a transparent electrode on one side so that the light emitted by the film is visible through the electrode and the glass.
Watch patterned light-emitting device image by Michael F. Rubner.
Procedure photos by Sean Müller.
The cover was designed by Betsy True.
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