Interface engineering of semiconductor/dielectric heterojunctions toward functional organic thin-film transistors

Interface modification is an effective and promising route for developing functional organic field-effect transistors (OFETs). In this context, however, researchers have not created a reliable method of functionalizing the interfaces existing in OFETs, although this has been crucial for the technological development of high-performance CMOS circuits. Here, we demonstrate a novel approach that enables us to reversibly photocontrol the carrier density at the interface by using photochromic spiropyran (SP) self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) sandwiched between active semiconductors and gate insulators. Reversible changes in dipole moment of SPs in SAMs triggered by lights with different wavelengths produce two distinct built-in electric fields on the OFET that can modulate the channel conductance and consequently threshold voltage values, thus leading to a low-cost noninvasive memory device. This concept of interface functionalization offers attractive new prospects for the development of organic electronic devices with tailored electronic and other properties.