In a groundbreaking advance poised to revolutionize wearable technology, researchers have developed fully stretchable organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) that boast both remarkable mechanical compliance and unprecedented efficiency. This latest innovation, detailed in a study recently published in Nature, confronts the long-standing inefficiencies plaguing stretchable OLEDs and paves the way for next-generation, skin-conformable displays that maintain their brightness under significant deformation.
Stretchable OLEDs hold immense promise for applications ranging from on-skin health monitoring gadgets to flexible consumer electronics. However, creating devices that combine high mechanical stretchability with efficient light emission has historically been a formidable challenge. Traditional approaches relied on either rigid components arranged in stretchable architectures or materials that suffer significant performance drops when extended. The key hurdle has been the insulating nature of elastomer matrices commonly used for stretchability, which impedes exciton dynamics crucial for high-efficiency light emission.
The team’s breakthrough centers around incorporating an intrinsically stretchable exciplex-assisted phosphorescent (ExciPh) layer within the OLED structure. This innovative layer employs a triplet-recycling mechanism that overcomes exciton energy transfer limitations imposed by the elastomer environment. By enabling efficient exciton utilization, the ExciPh layer achieves over 200% stretchability while maintaining an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 21.7%, a figure previously unattainable in highly flexible optoelectronic devices.
Strikingly, these light-emitting layers are composed entirely of intrinsically stretchable materials, eliminating the need for complicated and often unstable composites that blend flexible substrates with rigid emissive layers. The uniform stretchability ensures stable electroluminescence under mechanical strain, a critical factor for wearable electronics that must endure repeated bending and stretching without performance degradation.
Beyond the emissive layer, the researchers tackled a crucial bottleneck: the device electrodes. Contact materials had to combine mechanical robustness with efficient charge injection capabilities. To address this, they engineered MXene-contact stretchable electrodes (MCSEs), which exhibit both excellent elasticity and tunable work functions that optimize hole and electron injection. MXenes, a family of two-dimensional transition metal carbides and nitrides, are increasingly renowned for their outstanding mechanical and electronic properties, and their integration here underscores a new paradigm in stretchable device engineering.
The synergy between the ExciPh layer and MCSE electrodes culminates in fully stretchable OLED devices that deliver a record EQE of 17.0%, retaining nearly all of their luminescence intensity under strains up to 60%. This performance shatters previous limits on brightness and mechanical resilience, demonstrating the feasibility of practical, wearable OLED displays that adapt to human motion without compromising visual quality.
Significantly, the new device architecture strips away common trade-offs in stretchable electronics where mechanical compliance has often come at the cost of low efficiency or diminished lifetime. Instead, these OLEDs exhibit a balanced integration of flexibility, efficiency, and durability. This balanced performance opens exciting opportunities for seamless, deformable displays that could integrate with skin or textiles, advancing the field of human-machine interfaces in unprecedented ways.
The mechanisms that enable this advance also hold broad implications beyond OLEDs. The exciplex-assisted triplet recycling concept can be adapted to other emissive technologies and potentially to systems reliant on efficient energy transfer within flexible matrices—extending its impact into sensors, lighting, and bioelectronic devices.
This research underscores a critical shift toward designing intrinsically compliant electronic components at the molecular level, rather than relying on mechanical cleverness alone. By reimagining the light-emitting layer to withstand and function in mechanically demanding environments, the authors demonstrate a strategy that could redefine the design principles of stretchable optoelectronics.
In practical terms, these fully stretchable OLEDs could herald a future where wearable displays seamlessly conform to skin contours, providing vivid, high-resolution visual feedback for health monitoring, augmented reality, and even fashion-tech applications. Their high brightness and efficiency under strain mitigate issues related to power consumption and device heating, both essential for comfortable, prolonged wearability.
The combination of exciton dynamics control via the ExciPh layer and the flexible, tunable MXene electrodes paves not only a technical pathway but also a conceptual framework for next-generation devices. This holistic approach, comprehensively addressing both emissive and charge injection layers, sets a benchmark in the integration of mechanical and electronic functionalities.
Looking forward, the research team envisions further refinements in material compositions and device architectures to boost long-term durability and color gamut. Advances in scalable manufacturing processes will also be critical to translate these laboratory successes into commercially viable products, accelerating the deployment of truly wearable, high-performance displays.
With this transformative achievement, Zhou, Kim, Han, and colleagues have significantly advanced the frontier of stretchable electronics, bridging the persistent gap between mechanical robustness and device efficiency. As wearable technology increasingly permeates daily life, such innovations are poised to unlock new modalities of human-computer interaction that are as comfortable and adaptable as they are visually compelling.
Subject of Research: Fully stretchable organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) featuring intrinsically stretchable emissive layers and electrodes
Article Title: Exciplex-enabled high-efficiency, fully stretchable OLEDs
Article References:
Zhou, H., Kim, HW., Han, S.J. et al. Exciplex-enabled high-efficiency, fully stretchable OLEDs. Nature 649, 604–611 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-09904-0
Image Credits: AI Generated
DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09904-0
Keywords: stretchable OLED, exciplex, triplet recycling, MXene electrodes, external quantum efficiency, wearable displays, intrinsically stretchable materials, flexible optoelectronics
