Current Trends in Shrinking the Channel Length of Organic Transistors Down to the Nanoscale

Abstract

In this Review article, we highlighted current trends in shrinking the channel length of organic field effect transistors (OFETs) down to the nanoscale in three systems where sophisticated device fabrication has been integrated into the development of different electrodes with nanoscale gaps. The design principle is the combination of molecular design freedom and flexible molecular self-assembly with state-of-the-art device fabrication to realize organic field effect nano-transistors where molecular materials themselves behave as pivotal elements. Three different types of nanoscale electrodes are used for OFETs: metals, single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), and graphenes. These electrodes are made by e-beam lithography as well as other complementary methods (shadow deposition, underetching, nanoimprinting, rubber stamping, and microcontact printing).