September 22, 2006
The Key to Making High Mobility Polymer Thin Film Transistors: Nucleation of Crystals Off of the Gate Dielectric :: Stanford/ IBM ARC/ UC Davis/ UC Berkeley
[ Research] Highlight from IRG III (Directed Nano-assemblies and Interfaces for Advanced Electronics)
When conjugated polymer crystals nucleate off of the gate dielectric, the conjugated backbones, shown in red, are all aligned. Charge can easily hop from one grain to another.
Proven strategies for nucleating crystals on the dielectric
* Make the dielectric smooth
* Coat the dielectric with OTS
* Use high boiling point solvent or anneal the film
* Use high molecular weight polymers.