Patterning an Erosion-Free Polymeric Semiconductor Channel for Reliable All-Photolithography Organic Electronics
Renzhong Chen, Yongkun Yan, Xuejun Wang, Cheng Chang, Yan Zhao, Yunqi Liu, Dacheng Wei
Abstract
Reliable patterning of organic semiconductors (OSCs) with high uniformity is essential to all-photolithography organic electronics. However, the majority of cross-linked OSCs experience performance fluctuations after photolithography because of the inherent vulnerability of low-ordered regions. Herein, we develop an anti-solution penetration photolithography process to achieve the reliable patterning of the OSC layer for all-photolithography integrated organic electronics. Using a thick and highly cross-linked semiconductor film and a low-solubility developer, an erosion-free semiconductor channel is obtained with a high mobility of up to 1.254 cm2 V–1 s–1 and a uniform threshold voltage close to zero. Compared with existing all-photolithography organic circuits, the unit logic gate area consumption is lower by 1–3 orders of magnitude at 0.0069 mm2, while the transistor density is higher by 1–2 orders of magnitude at 6780 Tr cm–2. The miniaturized organic inverters maintain uncompromised voltage gains, and the 15-stage organic ring oscillators feature higher oscillation frequencies, making them promising for applications in wide-ranging integrated organic circuits.