Fully Solution-Processed and Foldable Metal-Oxide Thin-Film Transistor.

Abstract

Flexible and foldable thin-film transistors (TFTs) have been widely studied with the objective of achieving high-performance and low-cost flexible TFTs for next-generation displays. In this study, we introduced the fabrication of foldable TFT devices with excellent mechanical stability, high transparency, and high performance by a fully solution process including PI, YOx, In2O3, SWCNTs, IL-PVP, and Ag NWs. The fabricated fully solution-processed TFTs showed a higher transmittance above 86% in the visible range. Additionally, the charge-carrier mobility and Ion/Ioff ratio of them were 7.12 ± 0.43 cm(2)/V·s and 5.53 ± 0.82 × 10(5) at a 3 V low voltage operating, respectively. In particular, the fully solution-processed TFTs showed good electrical characteristics under tensile strain with 1 mm bending and even extreme folding up to a strain of 26.79%. Due to the good compatibility of each component layer, it maintained the charge-carrier mobility over 79% of initial devices after 5,000 cycles of folding test in both the parallel and perpendicular direction with a bending radius of 1 mm. These results show the potential of the fully solution-processed TFTs as flexible TFTs for a next generation devices because of the robust mechanical flexibility, transparency, and high electrical performance of it.