Imidazole derivatives for efficient organic light-emitting diodes

Since the first development of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) in 1987, imidazole derivatives, mainly including phenanthroimidazole (PI) and benzimidazole (BI), have increasingly attracted attention. Their strong electron-withdrawing properties make them suitable for emitters, hosts, and electron-transporting materials (ETMs). In this review, an overview of the recent developments regarding OLEDs based on imidazole derivatives, especially the relationship between the molecule structure and the device performance as fluorescent and host materials, is given.