Ajit K. Mahapatro

Schottky energy barrier and charge injection in metal/ copper-phthalocyanine/metal structures

We present experimental results on current injection from different metal electrodes into copper–phthalocyanine (Cu–Pc). The current–voltage (J–V) characteristics and current injected at the contact are investigated as a function of Schottky energy barrier, thickness of organic semiconductor, and temperature. These results are interpreted using a consistent description of J–V characteristics through the injection limited current in the case of high Schottky energy barriers and space charge limited current in the case of low Schottky energy barrier.

Electric-field-induced conductance transition in 8-hydroxyquinoline aluminum (Alq3)

We report an electric-field-induced conductance transition from an insulating state to a conducting state in a thin layer of Alq3 sandwiched between two metal electrodes. Field-induced switching behavior with a high on-off ratio of ∼105 is observed in the devices, in which the cathode electrode is Al and the anode electrode is varied including Al, Au, and indium tin oxide. The switching behavior is absent in devices in which both electrodes have a high work function, indicating that efficient electron injection has an important role in the electric-field-induced switching behavior of Alq3-based single-layer devices.

Gold surface with sub-nm roughness realized by evaporation on a molecular adhesion monolayer

This letter describes a technique for realizing a gold (Au) surface with roughness at the atomic scale using techniques compatible with integrated device fabrication. The Au layer is electron-beam evaporated on a self-assembled monolayer of (3-Mercaptopropyl) trimethoxysilane on an oxidized silicon substrate and shows a root-mean-square surface roughness of ∼2A over a 1μm2 area. The physical stability of the Au film toward commonly used chemicals and processes for photolithography and self-assembly, and its suitability for formation of well-ordered organic monolayers indicate that the films are well suited as substrates for future device fabrication in molecular electronics or other devices involving self-assembled monolayers.

Thickness dependence of space charge limited current and injection limited current in organic molecular semiconductors

We report the experimental investigations on space charge limited current (SCLC) and injection limited current (ILC) in copper phthalocyanine (CuPc), sandwiched between two metal electrodes. Thickness dependence of current-voltage characteristics of SCLC and ILC is accurately reproduced by the electric field and temperature dependent charge carrier mobility, without invoking charge density dependent mobility. These results are interpreted using a consistent description of SCLC and ILC, based on a unified model of hopping transport within Gaussian density of states in CuPc.

Nanometer scale electrode separation (nanogap) using electromigration at room temperature

Pairs of electrodes with nanometer separation (nanogap) are achieved through an electromigration-induced break-junction (EIBJ) technique at room temperature. Lithographically defined gold (Au) wires are formed by e-beam evaporation over oxide-coated silicon substrates silanized with (3-Mercaptopropyl)trimethoxysilane (MPTMS) and then subjected to electromigration at room temperature to create a nanometer scale gap between the two newly formed Au electrodes. The MPTMS is an efficient adhesive monolayer between SiO/sub 2/ and Au. Although the Au wires are initially 2 /spl mu/m wide, gaps with length /spl sim/1 nm and width /spl sim/5 nm are observed after breaking and imaging through a field effect scanning electron microscope. This technique eliminates the presence of any residual metal interlink in the adhesion layer (chromium or titanium for Au deposition over SiO/sub 2/) after breaking the gold wire, and it is much easier to implement than the commonly used low-temperature EIBJ technique which needs to be executed at 4.2 K. Metal-molecule-metal structures with symmetrical metal-molecule contacts at both ends of the molecule are fabricated by forming a self-assembled monolayer of -dithiol molecules between the EIBJ-created Au electrodes with nanometer separation. Electrical conduction through single molecules of 1,4-Benzenedimethanethiol (XYL) is tested using the Au/XYL/Au structure with chemisorbed gold-sulfur coupling at both contacts.

Device structure for electronic transport through individual molecules using nanoelectrodes

We present a simple and reliable method for making electrical contacts to small organic molecules with thiol endgroups. Nanometer-scale gaps between metallic electrodes have been fabricated by passing a large current through a lithographically-patterned Au-line with appropriate thickness. Under appropriate conditions, the passage of current breaks the Au-line, creating two opposite facing electrodes separated by a gap comparable to the length of small organic molecules. Current-voltage characteristics have been measured both before and after deposition of short organic molecules. The resistance of single 1,4-benzenedithiol and 1,4-bezenedimethanedithiol molecules were found to be 9MΩ and 26MΩ, respectively. The experimental results indicate strong electronic coupling to the contacts and are discussed using a relatively simple model of mesoscopic transport. The use of electrodes formed on an insulating surface by lithography and electromigration provides a stable structure suitable for integrated circuit a...

Charge carrier transport in metal phthalocyanine based disordered thin films

The charge carrier transport in metal phthalocyanine based disordered thin films has been investigated. Charge carrier mobility in these disordered thin films strongly depends on the electric field and temperature due to hopping conduction. The applicability of two different Gaussian disorder models has been compared and evaluated for charge carrier transport using simple experimental results and based on our extensive analysis, it has been found that spatial and energetic correlation is important in explaining the electrical transport in these organic semiconductors.

Biosensing Test-Bed Using Electrochemically Deposited Reduced Graphene Oxide

The development of an efficient test-bed for biosensors requires stable surfaces, capable of interacting with the functional groups present in bioentities. This work demonstrates the formation of highly stable electrochemically reduced graphene oxide (ERGO) thin films reproducibly on indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated glass substrates using a reliable technique through 60 s chronoamperometric reduction of a colloidal suspension maintained at neutral pH containing graphene oxide in deionized water. Structural optimization and biocompatible interactions of the resulting closely packed and uniformly distributed ERGO flakes on ITO surfaces (ERGO/ITO) are characterized using various microscopic and spectroscopic tools. Lipase enzyme is immobilized on the ERGO surface in the presence of ethyl-3-[3-(dimethylamino)propyl]carbodimide and N-hydroxysuccinimide for the detection of triglyceride in a tributyrin (TBN) solution. The ERGO/ITO surfaces prepared using the current technique indicate the noticeable detection of TBN, a source of triglycerides, at a sensitivity of 37 pA mg dL(-1) cm(-2) in the linear range from 50 to 300 mg dL(-1) with a response time of 12 s. The low apparent Michaelies-Menten constant of 0.28 mM suggests high enzyme affinity to TBN. The currently developed fast, simple, highly reproducible, and reliable technique for the formation of an ERGO electrode could be routinely utilized as a test bed for the detection of clinically active bioentities.

Vibration-Based Monitoring and Diagnosis of Dielectric Charging in RF-MEMS Switches

Dielectric charging due to metal-dielectric contact is one of the major modes of failure in capacitive radio frequency microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) switches, and it leads to actuation voltage fluctuations and, eventually, to device failure. Failure prognostics for such devices require novel methods to monitor the extent and location of trapped parasitic charges on or in the dielectric layer. Motivated by the success of resonant electrostatic force microscopy for mapping local trapped charges, we present in this paper a technique that monitors the resonance frequencies of multiple eigenmodes of the bridge conductor of the switch as a means to detect parasitic charges and nonuniformities in electric fields in the switch that could arise from nonuniform parasitic charge distribution. Both theory and experiments are presented to demonstrate the technique. Moreover, its potential advantages and limitations as a new diagnostic tool for MEMS health monitoring are discussed.

Impact of sacrificial layer type on thin-film metal residual stress

In this paper we study the impact of two sacrificial layers on the final residual stress of thin gold films. In particular, we comapre a typical photoresist layer (Shipley SC1827) to single-crystalline silicon. We fabricate and measure cantilever beams on both sacrificial layers and study their residual stresses by analyzing the final displacement profile of the released beams. All samples were fabricated at the same time and under identical conditions. The study clearly shows that the induced stress on thin films is dependent on the sacrificial layer. The gold film deposited over the single-crystalline silicon shows nearly zero gradient stress after release. On the other hand, gradient stress dominates the gold film deposited during the same run but over a photoresist layer. Such results are very useful in designing and fabricating a wide variety of low-stress actuators and sensors.