Author(s): Huang, YA (Huang, Yinan); Gong, X (Gong, Xue); Meng, YC (Meng, Yancheng); Wang, ZW (Wang, Zhongwu); Chen, XS (Chen, Xiaosong); Li, J (Li, Jie); Ji, DY (Ji, Deyang); Wei, ZM (Wei, Zhongming); Li, LQ (Li, Liqiang); Hu, WP (Hu, Wenping)

Source: NATURE COMMUNICATIONS Volume: 12 Issue: 1 Article Number: 21 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-20209-w Published: JAN 4 2021

Abstract: The temperature dependence of charge transport dramatically affects and even determines the properties and applications of organic semiconductors, but is challenging to effectively modulate. Here, we develop a strategy to circumvent this challenge through precisely tuning the effective height of the potential barrier of the grain boundary (i.e., potential barrier engineering). This strategy shows that the charge transport exhibits strong temperature dependence when effective potential barrier height reaches maximum at a grain size near to twice the Debye length, and that larger or smaller grain sizes both reduce effective potential barrier height, rendering devices relatively thermostable. Significantly, through this strategy a traditional thermo-stable organic semiconductor (dinaphtho[2,3-b:2,3 ' -f]thieno[3,2-b]thiophene, DNTT) achieves a high thermo-sensitivity (relative current change) of 155, which is far larger than what is expected from a standard thermally-activated carrier transport. As demonstrations, we show that thermo-sensitive OFETs perform as highly sensitive temperature sensors. Controlling temperature-depending charge transport in organic semiconductors is key to tailoring their electronic properties. Here, the authors report a potential barrier engineering strategy for modulating thermally-activated charge transport in organic semiconductors.

Accession Number: WOS:000665625900018

PubMed ID: 33397923

Author Identifiers:

Author        Web of Science ResearcherID        ORCID Number

wei, zhong ming                  0000-0002-6237-0993

Ji, Deyang                  0000-0002-8206-3130

Li, Liqiang         H-9094-2013         0000-0001-8399-3957

ISSN: 2041-1723

Full Text: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-020-20209-w