PPDN has a chemical structure of phenanthroline in conjugation with dicarbonitrile-substituted pyrazine. As PPDN is electron-deficient, it can be used as an electron-transport layer (ETL) or hole-injection layer (HIL) material in organic electronic devices.
PPDN can be used as an additive to prevent HATCN crystallization while it is solution processed. Films prepared from a mixture of PPDN and HATCN have been shown to have a transparent appearance. Furthermore, devices using HATCN and PPDN together showed a lower driving voltage and higher luminescence efficiency when compared to devices made using HATCN alone.