ARI-MA: Trap-Triggered Organic Field Effect Transistor as Low-Cost, Uncooled, Highly Sensitive Solid-State Photodetectors for Radiation Sensing

该项目的目标是开发一种极高增益、低噪声的有机光电探测器，以取代昂贵的光电倍增管(PMT)，用于低成本辐射探测器系统。该器件将利用入射光子作为开关阀来控制有源场效应晶体管的源漏输出电流。这些光电探测器可以通过在有机半导体-电极界面的俘获电子感应电荷注入来显著改变空穴注入从电极到半导体沟道。由于俘获的电子是由入射的光子注入的，每个被吸收的光子都会在器件中引起很大的输出电流变化，产生非常大的表观增益。提出的光电探测器将提供一种新的机制来实现可与相对低偏压驱动的PMT相媲美的高增益和低噪声，并且由于其优越的特性，包括紧凑的尺寸、稳健性、高增益、低噪声、低功耗、低成本和对闪烁体的光子发射的良好响应，具有取代PMT的巨大潜力。该项目的成功将产生新一代固态光电探测器，以实现美国国家科学基金会/国内核探测办公室S的资本投资成本目标，即每个探测器/传感器不到100美元。然后，这种新的低成本光电探测器可以与未来的低成本纳米复合闪烁体集成在一起，通过允许在偏远地区--如走私路线--部署许多紧凑、不显眼的探测器，从而能够探测和拦截核/辐射设备或组件材料，因为这些地区很难进行持续的有人监视。这将大大提高国家？S防范核攻击或辐射攻击的能力。这项拟议研究的成功实施还将对科学、技术和社会具有重要意义，特别是在工业、医疗和其他国防应用方面。例如，提高灵敏度的光电探测器将减少在计算机断层扫描中暴露给患者的辐射剂量。该项目还将在新兴的可打印电子产品类别中增加另一种新的低成本电子设备。此外，本科生将从内布拉斯加州大学林肯分校著名的本科生研究和推广计划中招收，包括内布拉斯加州材料和纳米科学中心非常成功的本科生创造性活动和研究体验计划(UCare)和本科生研究经验计划(REU)。

The goal of this project is to develop a type of extremely high-gain, low-noise organic photodetector as a replacement for expensive photomultiplier tubes (PMTs) for applications in the low-cost radiation detectors systems. The proposed device will use the incident photon as a switching valve to control the source-drain output current of organic field effect transistors. These photodetectors allow dramatic changing of the hole injection from electrode into semiconductor channel by the trapped-electrons-induced charge injection at the organic semiconductor-electrode interface. Because the trapped electrons are injected by the incident photons, each absorbed photon will cause a large output current change in the devices, producing a very large apparent gain. The proposed photodetector will provide a new mechanism to achieve a high gain and low noise comparable to that of PMTs driven by relative low bias, and has substantial potential to replace PMTs due to superior characteristics including compact size, robustness, high gain, low noise, low power consumption, low cost, and excellent responsivity to the photon emission from scintillator. The success of this project will yield a new generation of solid-state photodetectors to achieve the NSF/Domestic Nuclear Detection Office (DNDO)'s capital investment cost goals of less than $100 per detector/sensor. This new, low-cost photodetector may then be integrated with future low-cost nanocomposite scintillators, enabling the detection and interdiction of nuclear/radiological devices or component materials by allowing for deployment of many compact, unobtrusive detectors in remote areas - such as smuggling routes - where persistent manned surveillance would be difficult. This will significantly improve the nation?s ability to prevent nuclear or radiological attacks. Successful execution of the proposed research will also have significant importance for science, technology, and society, particularly in industrial, medical, and other defense applications. For example, an increased sensitivity photodetector would reduce the radiation dose exposed to the patient in computerized tomography scanning. This project will also add another new category of low-cost electronic device into the emerging class of printable electronics. Further, undergraduate students will be recruited from well-known undergraduate research and outreach programs at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, including the highly successful Undergraduate Creative Activities and Research Experiences Program (UCARE) and Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program in the Nebraska Center of Materials and Nanoscience.