Aug 25, 2025

New material gives QLED displays record efficiency and lifespan

Scientists created a stable organic material that makes QLEDs brighter, longer lasting, and more efficient, setting a new benchmark for display performance.

(Nanowerk News) A team at DGIST has created a breakthrough material that could make quantum-dot light-emitting diodes (QLEDs) far more durable and efficient, paving the way for brighter, longer-lasting displays.

QLEDs are known for their sharp colors and energy efficiency, but their biggest weakness has been short lifespans. The problem lies in the hole transport layer (HTL), which traditionally relies on triphenylamine-based materials that break down quickly under electrical stress, leading to fading brightness and poor stability.

Professor Youngu Lee’s group tackled this by designing a new HTL material based on dibenzofuran, a compound with a stronger, more stable molecular structure. This design boosts the binding energy within the material, improving both hole mobility and resistance to electron leakage. The result is a significant jump in efficiency and reliability (Small, "Boosting Efficiency and Longevity of Quantum Dot Light‐Emitting Diodes with Dibenzofuran‐Incorporated Hole Transport Materials Featuring High Bond Dissociation Energy").

Graph and device images showing a new QLED material with 230% higher efficiency and much longer lifespan than conventional designs.

A new dibenzofuran-based material boosts QLED performance, delivering 230% higher efficiency and a record lifetime of 1.46 million hours compared to conventional designs. (Image: DGIST) (click on image to enlarge)

In tests, the new material enabled green QLEDs to reach an external quantum efficiency of 25.7%. Even more striking, the devices maintained half their brightness after 1.46 million hours—66 times longer than conventional versions—setting a new performance record for this type of material.

“This development overcomes the weaknesses of conventional HTL materials and offers a path toward stable, high-efficiency QLEDs,” said Professor Lee. “We expect this approach to expand into next-generation displays and solar energy technologies.”

Source: Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST) (Note: Content may be edited for style and length)