Naphthalenetetracarboxylic Diimide-Based N-Channel Transistor Semiconductors: Structural Variation and Thiol-Enhanced Gold Contacts

Field-effect transistors (FETs) with organic semiconductors as active materials are the key switching components of organic, or "plastic"-based control, memory, or logic circuits. FETs are switched from the "off" to the "on" state by the creation of a channel of charge along a semiconductor-dielectric interface, controlled by a gate electrode. Current can then be passed between source and drain electrodes along the channel, with higher mobility correlating with higher current for a given geometry and quantity of injected charge. The chief advantage envisioned for "plastic electronics" would be the availability of more facile fabrication methods compared to those commonly employed for traditional silicon technology, resulting in a cost advantage when the performance level and device density associated with silicon are not essential. Organic semiconductors are more likely to be printable than vapor-deposited inorganics, and could be less sensitive to air than recently proposed solution-deposited inorganics.