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Performance Improvements in Conjugated Polymer Devices by Removal of Water‐Induced Traps
Author(s) -
Nikolka Mark,
Schweicher Guillaume,
Armitage John,
Nasrallah Iyad,
Jellett Cameron,
Guo Zhijie,
Hurhangee Michael,
Sadhanala Aditya,
McCulloch Iain,
Nielsen Christian B.,
Sirringhaus Henning
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
advanced materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 10.707
H-Index - 527
eISSN - 1521-4095
pISSN - 0935-9648
DOI - 10.1002/adma.201801874
Subject(s) - conjugated system , materials science , polymer , molecule , transistor , nanotechnology , inert , solvent , organic field effect transistor , chemical physics , field effect transistor , organic chemistry , chemistry , voltage , electrical engineering , composite material , engineering
The exploration of a wide range of molecular structures has led to the development of high‐performance conjugated polymer semiconductors for flexible electronic applications including displays, sensors, and logic circuits. Nevertheless, many conjugated polymer field‐effect transistors (OFETs) exhibit nonideal device characteristics and device instabilities rendering them unfit for industrial applications. These often do not originate in the material's intrinsic molecular structure, but rather in external trap states caused by chemical impurities or environmental species such as water. Here, a highly efficient mechanism is demonstrated for the removal of water‐induced traps that are omnipresent in conjugated polymer devices even when processed in inert environments; the underlying mechanism is shown, by which small‐molecular additives with water‐binding nitrile groups or alternatively water–solvent azeotropes are capable of removing water‐induced traps leading to a significant improvement in OFET performance. It is also shown how certain polymer structures containing strong hydrogen accepting groups will suffer from poor performances due to their high susceptibility to interact with water molecules; this allows the design guidelines for a next generation of stable, high‐performing conjugated polymers to be set forth.