• Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology
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• v.4 no.1
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• pp.118-122
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• 2009

Organic thin film transistors with a pentacene active layer and various polymer gate insulators were fabricated and their performances were investigated. Characteristics of pentacene thin film transistors on different polymer substrates were investigated using an atomic force microscope (AFM) and x-ray diffraction (XRD). The pentacene thin films were deposited by thermal evaporation on the gate insulators of various polymers. Hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS), polyvinyl acetate (PVA) and polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) were fabricated as the gate insulator where a pentacene layer was deposited at 40, 55, 70, 85, 100 oC. Pentacene thin films on PMMA showed the largest grain size and least trap concentration. In addition, pentacene TFTs of top-contact geometry are compared with PMMA and $SiO_2$ as gate insulators, respectively. We also fabricated pentacene TFT with Poly (3, 4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-Polysturene Sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) electrode by inkjet printing method. The physical and electrical characteristics of each gate insulator were tested and analyzed by AFM and I-V measurement. It was found that the performance of TFT was mainly determined by morphology of pentacene rather than the physical or chemical structure of the polymer gate insulator

• Journal of Information Display
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.16-18
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• 2005

Hybrid insulator pentacene thin film transistors (TFTs) are fabricated with thermally grown oxide and cross-linked polyvinylalcohol (PVA) including surface treatment by dilute ploymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) layer on $n^+$ doped silicon wafer. Through the optimization of $SiO_2$ layer thickness in hybrid insulator structure, carrier mobility is increased to more than 35 times than that of the TFT which has only a gate insulator of $SiO_2$ at the same electric field. The carrier mobility of $1.80cm^2$/V-s, subthreshold swing of 1.81 V/decade, and $I_{on}/I_{off}$ current ratio> $1.10{\times}10^5$ are obtained less than -30 V bias condition. The result is one of the best reported performances of pentacene TFTs with hybrid insulator including cross-linked PVA layer as a gate insulator at relatively low voltage operation.

• Proceedings of the KIEE Conference
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• 2000.11c
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• pp.455-457
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• 2000

In this work the electrical characteristics of organic TFTs with the semiconductor-insulator interfaces, where the gate dielectrics were treated by the two methods which are the deposition of Octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) on the insulator and rubbing the insulator surface. Pentacene is used as an active semiconducting layer. The semiconductor layer of pentacene was thermally evaporated in vacuum at a pressure of about $2{\times}10^{-7}$ Torr and at a deposition rate of $0.3{\AA}/sec$. Aluminum and gold were used for the gate and source/drain electrodes. OTS is used as a self-alignment layer between $SiO_2$ and pentacene. The gate dielectric surface was rubbed before pentacene is deposited on the insulator. In order to confirm the changes of the surface morphology the atomic force microscopy (AFM) was utilized. The characteristics of the fabricated TFTs are measured to clarify the effects of the surface treatment.

• 한국정보디스플레이학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2002.08a
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• pp.777-779
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• 2002

We report the performance of pentacene-based organic thin film transistors (OTFT) with PMMA (polymethyl methacrylate) as the gate insulator which was spin-coated on the ITO (indium tin oxide) glass substrate which was used as the gate contact. The pentacene thin film was deposited on the PMMA film and then Au source/drain contacts were deposited through shadow mask. The pentacene film shows better molecular ordering on PMMA compared with $SiO_2$ of Si wafer. The devices exhibited the field effect mobility of ${\sim}0.004cm^2$/Vs and on/off current ratio of ${\sim}10^3$.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2011.02a
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• pp.299-299
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• 2011

A dipolar interlayer can cause dramatic changes in the device characteristics of organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) or photovoltaics. A shift in the threshold voltage, for example, has been observed in an OFET where the organic semiconductor active layer is deposited on SiO2 modified with a dipolar monolayer. Dipolar molecules can similarly be used to change the current-voltage characteristics of organic-inorganic heterojunctions. We have conducted a series of experiments in which different molecular linkages are placed between a pentacene thin film and a silicon substrate. Interface modifications with different linkages allow us to predict and examine the nature of tunneling through pentacene on modified Si surfaces with different dipole moment. The molecular-scale structure and the tunneling properties of pentacene thin films on modified Si (001) with nitrobenzene and styrene were examined using scanning tunneling spectroscopy. Electronic interfaces using organic surface dipoles can be used to control the band lineups of a semiconductor at organic/inorganic interfaces. Our results can provide insights into the charge transport characteristics of organic thin films at electronic interfaces.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2015.08a
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• pp.210.2-210.2
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• 2015

유기 박막 트랜지스터(Organic Thin Film Transistor, OTFT)기반의 바이오센서는 저비용 제작 및 플렉서블 소자 제작이 가능하여 많은 주목을 받아오고 있다. 본 연구에서는, hexamethyldisilazane (HMDS) 표면 처리된 $Si/SiO_2$ 기판 위에 진공 증착 공정을 이용하여 pentacene 기반의 OTFT를 제작한 후, 수용성 매체에 대한 안정성을 향상시키기 위하여 저분자 물질인 tetratetracontane (TTC)를 진공 증착 공정을 이용하여 증착하였으며, cyclized perfluoropolymer (CYTOP)을 용액 공정으로 코팅하여 bilayer의 passivation 층을 형성하였다. 실제 제작된 OTFT의 수용성 매체에 대한 안정성을 테스트하기 위하여 소자에 수용성 phosphate buffered saline (PBS)용액을 투하하여 10분에 걸쳐 1분 간격으로 transistor의 transfer 특성을 측정하였다. 또한 측정된 $I_d-V_g$ 곡선 데이터를 이용하여 시간에 따른 드레인 전류, 이동도, 문턱 전압, 점멸비 등의 수치를 산출하였다. 그리고, 그 $I_d-V_g$ 곡선 데이터와 산출된 데이터들을 증류수가 투하된 OTFT 소자의 $I_d-V_g$ 곡선 데이터와 산출된 데이터들과 비교하였다. 결론적으로, TTC/Cytop bilayer passivation 층이 형성된 OTFT 소자는 인체 내 혈액의 pH와 유사한 PBS 용액 하에서도 안정적인 구동 성능을 보여 바이오센서로 응용될 수 있는 가능성이 있다는 결론을 얻었다.

• Journal of the Institute of Electronics Engineers of Korea SD
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• v.44 no.11
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• pp.15-19
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• 2007

This paper reports the effects of Ar ion beam surface treatment on a $SiO_2$ dielectric layer in organic thin film transistors. We compared the electrical properties of pentacene-based OTFTs, treated by $O_2$ plasma or Ar ion beam treatments and characterized the states of the surface of the dielectric by using atomic force microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. For the sample which received $O_2$ plasma treatment, the mobility increased significantly but the on/off current ratio was found very low. The Ar ion beam-treated sample showed a very high on/off current ratio as well as a moderately improved mobility. XPS data taken from the dielectric surfaces after each of treatments exhibit that the ratio of between Si-O bonds and O-Si-O bonds was much higher in the $O_2$ plasma treated surface than in the Ar ion beam treated surface. We believe that our surface treatment using an inert gas, Ar, carried out an effective surface cleaning while keeping surface damage very low, and also the improved device performances was achieved as a consequence of improved surface condition.

• 한국정보디스플레이학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2008.10a
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• pp.645-647
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• 2008

In this paper, we analyzed interface trap density between pentacene and PVP and SiO2 gate dielectric by using high-low C-V characteristics. The interface trap density was $10^{13}\;cm^{-2}eV^{-1}$.

• Journal of the Korean Vacuum Society
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• v.17 no.5
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• pp.394-399
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• 2008

Growth and electronic structure of pentacene film on silicon oxide before and after octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS) treatment have been studied by photoelectron spectroscopy and photoelectron emission microscopy. On the OTS-treated surface, due to the weak interaction between the substrate and pentacene, the diffusion of pentacene is enhanced and domain size gradually grows, leading to a gradual change of the HOMO offset position. On the bare silicon oxide, the change of the HOMO position is marginal because of relatively strong interaction between the substrate and pentacene from the beginning.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2010.08a
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• pp.65-65
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• 2010

Extreme ultraviolet lithography (EUVL) is expected to be applied for making patterns below 32 nm in device industry. An ultrathin EUV photoresist (PR) of a few nm in thickness is required to reduce minimum feature size further. Here, we show that pentacene molecular layers can be employed as a new EUV resist for the first time. Dots and lines in nm scale are successfully realized using the new molecular resist. We clearly provide the mechanism for forming the nanopatterns with scanning photoemission microscope (SPEM), EUV interference lithography (EUV-IL), atomic force microscope (AFM), photoemission spectroscopy (PES), etc. The molecular PR has several advantages over traditional polymer EUV PRs; for example, high thermal/chemical stability, negligible outgassing, ability to control the height and width on the nanometer scale, leaving fewer residuals, no need for a chemical development process and thus reduction of chemical waste to make the nanopatterns. Besides, it could be applied to any substrate to which pentacene bonds chemically, such as $SiO_2$, SiN, and SiON, which is of importance in the device industry.