Benchmarking organic thin film transistor inverter design styles

Abstract

Organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) are a promising technology for large-area electronics; choosing an appropriate circuit style is critical to enhancing OTFT circuit functionality and reliability. Here, we design and evaluate different types of static and dynamic logic based on complementary and p-type only technology styles, benchmarking their performance under equivalent processing and testing conditions. We find that differences in off characteristics between n-type and p-type OTFTs to be the primary factor for the choice of logic style. For complementary technology, we conclude that static logic is preferred over dynamic logic considering limited n-type transistor off characteristics, integration density, and delay. In the case of p-type transistors, pre-discharge dynamic logic is preferred over static logic, primarily due to the static power efficiency from good p-type transistor off characteristics. We expect this evaluation to be helpful for assisting design style decisions as these technologies continue to mature and develop.