Egon Pavlica

Optically switchable transistor via energy-level phototuning in a bicomponent organic semiconductor

Organic semiconductors are suitable candidates for printable, flexible and large-area electronics. Alongside attaining an improved device performance, to confer a multifunctional nature to the employed materials is key for organic-based logic applications. Here we report on the engineering of an electronic structure in a semiconducting film by blending two molecular components, a photochromic diarylethene derivative and a poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) matrix, to attain phototunable and bistable energy levels for the P3HTs hole transport. As a proof-of-concept we exploited this blend as a semiconducting material in organic thin-film transistors. The device illumination at defined wavelengths enabled reversible tuning of the diarylethenes electronic states in the blend, which resulted in modulation of the output current. The device photoresponse was found to be in the microsecond range, and thus on a technologically relevant timescale. This modular blending approach allows for the convenient incorporation of various molecular components, which opens up perspectives on multifunctional devices and logic circuits.

Flexible non-volatile optical memory thin-film transistor device with over 256 distinct levels based on an organic bicomponent blend

Organic nanomaterials are attracting a great deal of interest for use in flexible electronic applications such as logic circuits, displays and solar cells. These technologies have already demonstrated good performances, but flexible organic memories are yet to deliver on all their promise in terms of volatility, operational voltage, write/erase speed, as well as the number of distinct attainable levels. Here, we report a multilevel non-volatile flexible optical memory thin-film transistor based on a blend of a reference polymer semiconductor, namely poly(3-hexylthiophene), and a photochromic diarylethene, switched with ultraviolet and green light irradiation. A three-terminal device featuring over 256 (8 bit storage) distinct current levels was fabricated, the memory states of which could be switched with 3 ns laser pulses. We also report robustness over 70 write-erase cycles and non-volatility exceeding 500 days. The device was implemented on a flexible polyethylene terephthalate substrate, validating the concept for integration into wearable electronics and smart nanodevices.

Photo-induced intramolecular charge transfer in an ambipolar field-effect transistor based on a π-conjugated donor–acceptor dyad

A π-conjugated tetrathiafulvalene-fused perylenediimide (TTF-PDI) molecular dyad is successfully used as a solution-processed active material for light sensitive ambipolar field-effect transistors with balanced hole and electron mobilities. The photo-response of the TTF-PDI dyad resembles its absorption profile. Wavelength-dependent photoconductivity measurements reveal an important photo-response at an energy corresponding to a PDI-localized electronic π–π* transition and also a more moderate effect due to an intramolecular charge transfer from the HOMO localized on the TTF unit to the LUMO localized on the PDI moiety. This work clearly elucidates the interplay between intra- and intermolecular electronic processes in organic devices.

Single-step solution processing of small-molecule organic semiconductor field-effect transistors at high yield

Here, we report a simple, alternative route towards high-mobility structures of the small-molecular semiconductor 5,11-bis(triethyl silylethynyl) anthradithiophene that requires one single processing step without the need for any post-deposition processing. The method relies on careful control of the casting temperature of the semiconductor and allows rapid production of transistors with uniform and reproducible device performance over large areas.

Electronic and structural characterisation of a tetrathiafulvalene compound as a potential candidate for ambipolar transport properties

We report a joint experimental and theoretical study on the electronic structure and the solid-state organisation of bis(naphthoquinone)-tetrathiafulvalene (BNQ-TTF) as a promising ambipolar semiconductor. Accordingly, organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) fabricated with this material show both hole and electron transport for the first time in TTF derivatives.

Time-of-flight mobility of charge carriers in position-dependent electric field between coplanar electrodes

Time-of-flight measurements of the photocurrent in thin organic semiconductor layers represent an effective way to extract charge carrier mobility. A common method to interpret the time-dependence of the photocurrent in these material systems assumes a position-independent electric field between two coplanar electrodes. In this letter, we compare time-dependence of the photocurrent, measured in the samples comprising thin layers of poly-3-hexylthiophene, with the Monte Carlo simulations. In the simulations, we have used both, a position-independent and a position-dependent electric field. We obtained a favorable agreement between the simulations and the measurements only in the case of position-dependent electric field. We demonstrate that the charge carrier mobility may be underestimated by more than one order of magnitude, if a position-independent electric field is used in the calculations of the mobility.

Effect of Water Layer at the SiO2/Graphene Interface on Pentacene Morphology

Atomic force microscopy has been used to examine early stages of pentacene growth on exfoliated single-layer graphene transferred to SiO2 substrates. We have observed 2D growth with mean height of 1.5 ± 0.2 nm on as-transferred graphene. Three-dimensional islands of pentacene with an average height of 11 ± 2 nm were observed on graphene that was annealed at 350 °C prior to pentacene growth. Compellingly similar 3D morphology has been observed on graphene transferred onto SiO2 that was treated with hexamethyldisilazane prior to the transfer of graphene. On multilayer graphene we have observed 2D growth, regardless of the treatment of SiO2. We interpret this behavior of pentacene molecules in terms of the influence of the dipolar field that emerges from the water monolayer at the graphene/SiO2 interface on the surface energy of graphene.

Displacement current in bottom-contact organic thin-film transistor

We have used the Shockley?Ramo theorem to calculate the displacement current of drifting charge carriers in bottom-contact organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs). The displacement current is quantified in terms of the weighting field of the sensing electrode. We demonstrated that for the transistors, with dielectric thickness below 100?nm and channel length above 1??m, the weighting field near the sensing electrode exponentially decays with the distance from the electrode. This implies that the charge transport near metal contacts can be studied with a measurement of displacement current. The presented model approximation simplifies interpretation of, for example, transient photocurrent measurements and optical de-trapping measurements in OTFTs.

Properties and Application Perspective of Hybrid Titania-Silica Patterns Fabricated by Inkjet Printing

A hybrid titania-silica cold-setting sol has been developed that can be deposited onto a wide variety of surfaces without the need for high-temperature fixing and that is suitable for material printing deposition. Thin hybrid titania-silica coatings were patterned onto glass and PET substrates by inkjet printing. Well-defined hybrid titania-silica patterns, with thicknesses ranging from 40 to 400 nm, were fabricated by overprinting 1 to 10 layers. Excellent mechanical, optical, and photocatalytic properties were observed, making the reported material well suited for the fabrication of transparent self-cleaning coatings both on mineral and organic substrates. The printed patterns exhibit photoelectrochemical activity that can be further improved by thermal or photonic curing. A concept of fully printed interdigitated photoelectrochemical cells on flexible PET substrates utilizing the reported hybrid photocatalyst is disclosed as well.

Fast-Response Photonic Device Based on Organic-Crystal Heterojunctions Assembled into a Vertical-Yet-Open Asymmetric Architecture

Crystalline dioctyl-3,4,9,10-perylenedicarboximide nanowires and 6,13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl) pentacene microplates are integrated into a vertical-yet-open asymmetrical heterojunction for the realization of a high-performance organic photovoltaic detector, which shows fast photoresponse, ultrahigh signal-to-noise ratio, and high sensitivity to weak light.