Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) are already a dominant force in the mobile display market and are rapidly expanding into lighting, automotive, and wearable technologies. Now, researchers at the University of Michigan have developed a breakthrough OLED device that could replace bulky night vision goggles with lightweight glasses. This innovation could make night vision technology more practical, cost-effective, and suitable for extended use. Moreover, the new OLEDs exhibit a unique “memory effect” that could lead to advanced computer vision systems capable of both sensing and interpreting incoming light and images.
Current night vision systems rely on image intensifiers that convert near-infrared light into electrons, which then pass through a vacuum and multiply, ultimately striking a phosphor screen to produce visible light. While effective, these systems are heavy, require high voltage, and rely on cumbersome components.
The new OLED device developed by the University of Michigan team also converts near-infrared light into visible light, but it amplifies the light over 100 times using a thin film that’s less than a micron thick—far slimmer than a human hair, which is about 50 microns thick. This eliminates the need for bulky components, dramatically reducing weight and power consumption.
“One of the most attractive features of this new approach is that it amplifies light within a thin film stack that is less than a micron thick,” said Chris Giebink, professor of electrical and computer engineering at the University of Michigan and the study’s corresponding author. The work was recently published in Nature Photonics.
The new OLED technology operates at a lower voltage than traditional image intensifiers, offering the potential for longer battery life. The device includes a photon-absorbing layer that converts infrared light into electrons, which then pass through a five-layer OLED stack. In the stack, the electrons are converted into visible light photons. The goal is to generate five photons for every electron passing through the OLED stack, significantly amplifying the visible light output.
Unlike previous OLED technologies, which could only convert near-infrared light to visible light without gain, this new device achieves high photon gain, amplifying the light. “This marks the first demonstration of high photon gain in a thin film device,” said Raju Lampande, a postdoctoral researcher and lead author of the study.
One of the most exciting features of the new OLEDs is their memory effect, known as hysteresis, where the light output at any given moment is influenced by past illumination. This means the OLED can “remember” light exposure, which could have revolutionary implications for computer vision systems.
“This device can get stuck on and remember things over time, which is unusual,” Giebink explained. While this memory behavior poses challenges for night vision applications, it could be a game-changer for image processing tasks. The OLED’s ability to process and classify input images without the need for separate computing hardware mimics how biological neurons interpret visual signals.
The device is built using readily available materials and manufacturing methods already employed in OLED production, making it both cost-effective and scalable for widespread use. The research, conducted in collaboration with OLEDWorks and RTX, has led to a patent-pending technology that could reshape the future of both night vision and computer vision applications.
With this innovative OLED development, night vision could soon become lighter, more accessible, and more integrated with future technologies—paving the way for enhanced vision systems and new applications in artificial intelligence and beyond.
By Impact Lab
