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A Nonchlorinated Solvent-Processable Fluorinated Planar Conjugated Polymer for Flexible Field-Effect Transistors
Myeongjae Lee1, Min Je Kim2, Suhee Ro3
1Department of Chemistry, Korea University , Seoul 02841, Republic of Korea.
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
|August 9, 2017
Summary
This study developed a new semiconducting polymer (PDPP2DT-F2T2) processable with safe, nonchlorinated solvents. Devices fabricated with high boiling point solvents and annealing achieved superior hole mobilities compared to those using restricted chlorinated solvents.
Area of Science:
- Organic electronics
- Materials science
- Polymer chemistry
Background:
- Polymer field-effect transistors (FETs) offer high carrier mobilities but often rely on hazardous chlorinated solvents.
- Health and environmental concerns restrict the industrial use of solvents like chloroform, chlorobenzene, and o-dichlorobenzene.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize a low band gap semiconducting polymer (PDPP2DT-F2T2) processable with nonchlorinated solvents.
- To investigate the impact of nonchlorinated solvent properties and thermal annealing on polymer FET performance.
- To demonstrate the potential of these eco-friendly processed FETs for flexible electronics.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of PDPP2DT-F2T2 polymer with planar geometry.
- Processing of polymer films using nonchlorinated solvents (toluene, o-xylene, 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene).
- Structural characterization of polymer films and electrical property measurements in FET devices.
- Thermal annealing of FET devices to optimize performance.
- Fabrication of flexible FETs on PEN substrates.
Main Results:
- PDPP2DT-F2T2 is processable with toluene, o-xylene, and 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene, yielding ambipolar FETs with dominant hole transport.
- Hole mobility increased with solvent boiling point, reaching 0.10 cm²/V·s with 1,2,4-trimethylbenzene.
- Thermal annealing significantly enhanced mobility, with TMB-processed devices reaching 1.28 cm²/V·s (vs. 0.43 cm²/V·s for CF-processed).
- Nonchlorinated solvents promoted edge-on polymer chain orientation, beneficial for charge transport.
- Flexible TMB-processed FETs showed excellent mobility and stability over 300 bending cycles.
Conclusions:
- Organized polymer chain assembly for high-performance FETs can be achieved using high boiling point nonchlorinated solvents and post-thermal treatment.
- Polymer FETs processed with high boiling point nonhalogenated solvents can outperform those processed with halogenated solvents.
- This work presents a viable, eco-friendly approach for fabricating high-performance polymer FETs for flexible electronic applications.
