Polysilane-Based Polymer Diodes Emitting Ultraviolet Light

Abstract
We show for the first time that a thin film of the organic-inorganic hybrid polymer polysilane can be used as an active element in a light-emitting diode with a large active area that generates ultraviolet light at low temperature. The thin-film device emitted 3.35 eV (370 nm) light with moderate efficiency (0.01–0.06%) at temperatures below 210 K. The origin of the emission was assigned to the 1B u exciton on the one-dimensional silicon chain. The reason for the decrease of the emission efficiency above 50 K was discussed in relation to the order-disorder phase transition in the polysilane thin film.