Single ambipolar OECT-based inverter with volatility and nonvolatility on demand

Area of Science:

• Organic electronics
• Neuromorphic computing
• Artificial intelligence hardware

Background:

• Organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) offer potential for energy-efficient brain-inspired AI.
• Developing single-component devices is crucial for simplifying complex neuromorphic architectures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To report single-component OECT-based inverters using ambipolar p(gDPP-V).
• To investigate the dual volatile and nonvolatile functionalities of these OECT-based inverters.
• To explore their applications in neuromorphic computing and logic circuits.

Main Methods:

• Incorporation of ambipolar p(gDPP-V) into OECTs.
• Fabrication and characterization of conventional and vertical OECT devices.
• Evaluation of inverter performance, including voltage gain and dual-mode operation.

Main Results:

• State-of-the-art ambipolar OECT performances achieved (p/n-type mode transconductance of 29/25 S cm^-1, vertical transconductance of 297.2/292.4 μS μm^-2).
• A highly stable vertical OECT-based inverter demonstrated a high voltage gain (105 V V^-1) at a low driving voltage (0.8 V).
• The inverter exhibited voltage-regulated dual mode: volatile receptor and nonvolatile synapse.

Conclusions:

• The ambipolar OECT-based inverter shows promise for energy-efficient AI devices.
• Its dual volatile and nonvolatile operations enable applications in physiology signal recording, logic circuits, and neuromorphic simulations.
• This technology opens possibilities for reconfigurable complementary logic circuits in novel computing paradigms.