TY - JOUR
T1 - Highly Ordered Small Molecule Organic Semiconductor Thin-Films Enabling Complex, High-Performance Multi-Junction Devices
AU - Sawatzki-Park, Michael
AU - Wang, Shu Jen
AU - Kleemann, Hans
AU - Leo, Karl
N1 - Funding Information:
S.-J.W. acknowledges funding from the German Research Foundation (project number 450922597) and support from the Hector Fellow Academy. H.K. also thanks the German Research Foundation for funding (project number 495141293). K.L. thanks the German Research Foundation for funding (project numbers 456344071 and 435285835).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Authors.
PY - 2023/7/12
Y1 - 2023/7/12
N2 - Organic semiconductors have opened up many new electronic applications, enabled by properties like flexibility, low-cost manufacturing, and biocompatibility, as well as improved ecological sustainability due to low energy use during manufacturing. Most current devices are made of highly disordered thin-films, leading to poor transport properties and, ultimately, reduced device performance as well. Here, we discuss techniques to prepare highly ordered thin-films of organic semiconductors to realize fast and highly efficient devices as well as novel device types. We discuss the various methods that can be implemented to achieve such highly ordered layers compatible with standard semiconductor manufacturing processes and suitable for complex devices. A special focus is put on approaches utilizing thermal treatment of amorphous layers of small molecules to create crystalline thin-films. This technique has first been demonstrated for rubrene─an organic semiconductor with excellent transport properties─and extended to some other molecular structures. We discuss recent experiments that show that these highly ordered layers show excellent lateral and vertical mobilities and can be electrically doped to achieve high n- and p-type conductivities. With these achievements, it is possible to integrate these highly ordered layers into specialized devices, such as high-frequency diodes or completely new device principles for organics, e.g., bipolar transistors.
AB - Organic semiconductors have opened up many new electronic applications, enabled by properties like flexibility, low-cost manufacturing, and biocompatibility, as well as improved ecological sustainability due to low energy use during manufacturing. Most current devices are made of highly disordered thin-films, leading to poor transport properties and, ultimately, reduced device performance as well. Here, we discuss techniques to prepare highly ordered thin-films of organic semiconductors to realize fast and highly efficient devices as well as novel device types. We discuss the various methods that can be implemented to achieve such highly ordered layers compatible with standard semiconductor manufacturing processes and suitable for complex devices. A special focus is put on approaches utilizing thermal treatment of amorphous layers of small molecules to create crystalline thin-films. This technique has first been demonstrated for rubrene─an organic semiconductor with excellent transport properties─and extended to some other molecular structures. We discuss recent experiments that show that these highly ordered layers show excellent lateral and vertical mobilities and can be electrically doped to achieve high n- and p-type conductivities. With these achievements, it is possible to integrate these highly ordered layers into specialized devices, such as high-frequency diodes or completely new device principles for organics, e.g., bipolar transistors.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85163763578&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1021/acs.chemrev.2c00844
DO - 10.1021/acs.chemrev.2c00844
M3 - Review article
C2 - 37315945
SN - 0009-2665
VL - 123
SP - 8232
EP - 8250
JO - Chemical Reviews
JF - Chemical Reviews
IS - 13
ER -