Growth and morphology of rubrene thin films on hydrophilic and hydrophobic substrates

Abstract

Growths of rubrene thin films on the hydrophilic and hydrophobic substrates have been studied using AFM and NEXAFS. The "hydrophobation" of the substrate surface tends to retard the diffusion of rubrene molecules and results in smaller grains for hydrophobic substrate surface compared to hydrophilic one. The substrate surface energy is found to influence strongly the growth and morphology of the deposited rubrene films. No orientation of rubrene molecules are observed on either type of substrates.