The formation and characterization of polymer light-emitting diodes

The first part of this dissertation discusses a systematic study on the correlation between polymer morphology and device performance. The conformational differences in polymer films are investigated through the analysis of Reflective Absorption Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy. Device performance has been found to be determined by the physical properties of polymer films, as well as polymer processing conditions. Polymer morphologies are subject to change even while the devices are under electrical bias. In the second part of this dissertation, a novel experimental design is conducted to in situ monitor the reorientation of polymer chains within an operating device.; A template activated surface process is reported and successfully applied to low-temperature plastic lamination for the fabrication of organic electronic devices. This process allows the anode and cathode to be fabricated separately and later be laminated to form a complete device. A continuous, large-area coating process is also demonstrated at the final part of this dissertation.