Enhancement of Carrier Mobilities of Organic Semiconductors on Sol–Gel Dielectrics: Investigations of Molecular Organization and Interfacial Chemistry Effects

Abstract The dielectric‐semiconductor interfacial interactions critically influence the morphology and molecular ordering of the organic semiconductor molecules, and hence have a profound influence on mobility, threshold voltage, and other vital device characteristics of organic field‐effect transistors. In this study, p‐channel small molecule/polymer (evaporated pentacene and spin‐coated poly(3,3‴;‐didodecylquarterthiophene) – PQT) and n‐channel fullerene derivative ({6}‐1‐(3‐(2‐thienylethoxycarbonyl)‐propyl)‐{5}‐1‐phenyl‐[5,6]‐C61 – TEPP‐C61) show a significant enhancement in device mobilities ranging from ∼6 to ∼45 times higher for all classes of semiconductors deposited on sol–gel silica gate‐dielectric than on pristine/octyltrichlorosilane (OTS)‐treated thermally grown silica. Atomic force microscopy, synchrotron X‐ray diffraction, photoluminescence/absorption, and Raman spectroscopy studies provide comprehensive evidences that sol–gel silica dielectrics‐induced enhancement in both p‐ and n‐channel organic semiconductors is attributable to better molecular ordering/packing, and hence reduced charge trapping centers due to lesser structural defects at the dielectric‐semiconductor interface.