Structural analysis of organic semiconductor composites

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The Global market on printed/flexible electronics is projected to be $US 300 billion in 2030 by iDTechEx's latest report. To bring the printed electronic closer to reality, high performance organic semiconductors are required for printing organic thin film transistors (OTFTs) which is the key element for printed circuits. Very recently, organic semiconductor composites, which combine the high mobility of small molecule semiconductors and the excellent solution-processability of polymers, have been shown as the most promising semiconducting materials for OTFTs. However, due to composite nature, the semiconductor composite films often exhibit large variations in micro-structural morphologies, which have a dramatic influence on device performance. There is an urgent need to investigate the morphologies of organic semiconductor composites through a systematic engineering approach to gain fundamental understanding of the correlation of film morphology and device performance. With the support from Xerox Research Centre of Canada, we propose this NSERC CRD project to conduct a fundamental study on the micro-structural morphologies of organic semiconductor composites using spectroscopy and microscopy technologies. The outcomes of this research will map out the different morphological properties of the representative organic semiconductor composites, and will correlate the morphology to electrical performance of the semiconductor composites. Two model systems, polymeric semiconductor/carbon nanotube composite and polymer/high mobility small molecular semiconductor composite, will be investigated. The study of these two model systems will provide us better understanding of semiconductor composites in solid state and offer some general guidance for design of specific high performance composites. One doctoral student will be trained in the research work with the aim that he can get into the organic electronics industry when the project is completed.