Structural Nanoprobes of Organic Semiconductor Devices
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Physics
Abstract
Organic semiconductors are an exciting new class of material that combine the electronic properties traditionally only associated with inorganic materials, with the mechanical properties and processibility of polymers (plastics) and small organic molecules. In particular, the ability to process active semiconductor layers through solution processing has led to the commercialisation of organic light-emitting diode-based displays. Commercial potential has also been demonstrated by organic transistors and organic solar cells, where both technologies have the advantage of low-cost processing and the ability to be incorporated into flexible architectures.However, as organic semiconductors are a relatively new class of material, there are still many fundamental questions governing key processes that affect device performance. For example, organic semiconductor films are typically less ordered than their inorganic counterparts and the influence of domain structure, molecular orientation and molecular alignment on charge transport is not fully understood. Additionally, for organic solar cells, where typically two different materials are blended together to form efficient networks for charge separation and transport, the influence of material mixing on charge separation and transport are still being discovered.Since organic semiconductors have vastly different properties compared to inorganic semiconductors, the development and application of new techniques to probe the properties of this new class of material is required. This research programme will adapt state-of-the-art microscopes and utilize advanced X-ray analytical techniques to probe structure and device action in organic devices with unprecedented precision and clarity. This further understanding of device operation will allow for the identification of physical processes that limit device performance and hence promote future device optimisation.
Publications
Collins B
(2010)
Molecular Miscibility of Polymer-Fullerene Blends
in The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters
Schuettfort T
(2012)
Microstructure of polycrystalline PBTTT films: domain mapping and structure formation.
in ACS nano
Watts B
(2011)
Mapping of Domain Orientation and Molecular Order in Polycrystalline Semiconducting Polymer Films with Soft X-Ray Microscopy
in Advanced Functional Materials
Campbell AR
(2008)
Low-temperature control of nanoscale morphology for high performance polymer photovoltaics.
in Nano letters
Yan H
(2011)
Interfaces in organic devices studied with resonant soft x-ray reflectivity
in Journal of Applied Physics
Friedel B
(2011)
Influence of solution heating on the properties of PEDOT:PSS colloidal solutions and impact on the device performance of polymer solar cells
in Organic Electronics
He X
(2014)
Influence of Fluorination and Molecular Weight on the Morphology and Performance of PTB7:PC 71 BM Solar Cells
in The Journal of Physical Chemistry C
Yan H
(2012)
Influence of dielectric-dependent interfacial widths on device performance in top-gate P(NDI2OD-T2) field-effect transistors
in Applied Physics Letters
Yan H
(2010)
Influence of Annealing and Interfacial Roughness on the Performance of Bilayer Donor/Acceptor Polymer Photovoltaic Devices
in Advanced Functional Materials
Friedel B
(2010)
Influence of Alkyl Side-Chain Length on the Performance of Poly(3-alkylthiophene)/Polyfluorene All-Polymer Solar Cells
in Chemistry of Materials
Dalgleish S
(2011)
Indole-substituted nickel dithiolene complexes in electronic and optoelectronic devices
in Journal of Materials Chemistry
Gwinner MC
(2012)
Highly efficient single-layer polymer ambipolar light-emitting field-effect transistors.
in Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)
Collins B
(2011)
Fullerene-Dependent Miscibility in the Silole-Containing Copolymer PSBTBT-08
in Macromolecules
Friend RH
(2012)
Excitons and charges at organic semiconductor heterojunctions.
in Faraday discussions
McNeill CR
(2008)
Evolution of the nanomorphology of photovoltaic polyfluorene blends: sub-100 nm resolution with x-ray spectromicroscopy.
in Nanotechnology
Hwang I
(2014)
Evolution of phase separation upon annealing and the influence on photocurrent generation in ternary blend organic solar cells
in Synthetic Metals
McNeill C
(2009)
Evolution of Laterally Phase-Separated Polyfluorene Blend Morphology Studied by X-ray Spectromicroscopy
in Macromolecules
McNeill C
(2008)
Efficient Polythiophene/Polyfluorene Copolymer Bulk Heterojunction Photovoltaic Devices: Device Physics and Annealing Effects
in Advanced Functional Materials
Friedel B
(2009)
Effects of Layer Thickness and Annealing of PEDOT:PSS Layers in Organic Photodetectors
in Macromolecules
Hwang I
(2009)
Drift-diffusion modeling of photocurrent transients in bulk heterojunction solar cells
in Journal of Applied Physics
Brenner T
(2010)
Device physics of inverted all-polymer solar cells
in Journal of Applied Physics
Zhang F
(2013)
Critical role of alkyl chain branching of organic semiconductors in enabling solution-processed N-channel organic thin-film transistors with mobility of up to 3.50 cm² V(-1) s(-1).
in Journal of the American Chemical Society
McNeill C
(2009)
Conjugated-Polymer Blends for Optoelectronics
in Advanced Materials
Vaynzof Y
(2012)
Compositional and Morphological Studies of Polythiophene/Polyflorene Blends in Inverted Architecture Hybrid Solar Cells
in Advanced Functional Materials
Description | This EPSRC Advanced Fellowship for Dr Chris McNeill allowed him to develop a series of advanced structural probes, including synchrotron-based techniques, for characterisation of the microstructure of polymer electronics devices, particularly transistors and solar cells. Combined with device physics studies, this work has furthered our understanding of charge transport and photophysics relevant to improving device performance. |
Exploitation Route | The work will inform the optimisation of practical organic electronic devices, and provides structural probes that are of interest to researchers in other fields. |
Sectors | Electronics,Energy |
Description | The findings have assisted in the optimisation of polymer solar cells and transistors, accelerating their commercial application. |
First Year Of Impact | 2010 |
Sector | Electronics,Energy |
Impact Types | Economic |