Intrinsic charge carrier mobility in single-crystal OFET by “fast trapping vs. slow detrapping” model

Abstract

Abstract This study investigates the gate stress-induced mobility discrepancy in p-type single-crystal organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) on an octyltrichlorosilane (OTS)-modified SiO2/Si substrate. During measurements in atmosphere, anti-clockwise hysteresis was observed in the transfer curve, and the mobility calculated from the forward sweep was smaller than that calculated from the reverse sweep. Hysteresis has often been observed for OFETs but the mobility discrepancy has not been clearly understood. We formulated a “fast trapping vs. slow detrapping” model and suggested that the mobility values calculated from the reverse sweep represent the intrinsic property of the material. To verify the validity of this model, we investigated mobility anisotropy of an air-stable organic semiconductor, 2,7-bis(4-methoxyphenyl)benzo[b]benzo[4,5]thieno[2,3-d]thiophene (DBOP-BTBT). By measuring the single-crystal OFET characteristics of many crystals with different orientations, we observed anisotropic hole mobility calculated from the reverse sweep. The mobility along the b-axis, which corresponds to the π-π stacking direction, was 13.9 cm2 V−1 s−1, and that along the a-axis was 6.2 cm2 V−1 s−1. However, we did not see clear anisotropy when mobility was calculated from the forward sweep due to a variation in the data. The threshold voltage from the reverse and the forward sweeps showed isotropic characteristics within the range from −60 to −70 V and from −50 to −60 V, respectively. These results indicate that the numbers of filled traps were different between the reverse and the forward sweeps at the interface, and confirm the validity of our model.