Low‐Voltage Polyelectrolyte‐Gated Polymer Field‐Effect Transistors Gravure Printed at High Speed on Flexible Plastic Substrates

Abstract

This study reports the fabrication of polymer field‐effect transistors operating under a bias of |1 V| in which the insulator and semiconductor are gravure‐printed on plastic at the high speed of 0.7 m s−1. Remarkably, the process does not necessitate any surface modification and relies solely on the careful selection and optimization of formulations based on solvent blends. In addition to demonstrating high‐throughput fabrication, this study fulfills another requirement for organic electronics and achieves low‐voltage operation in ambient air by using a polyelectrolyte insulator, poly(4‐styrenesulfonic acid) (PSSH). PSSH is a proton conductor that forms electrical double layers at the interfaces with the gate electrode and the semiconductor channel upon application of a small gate voltage (≤ |1 V|). Printed PSSH exhibits a high capacitance of 10 µF cm−2, leading to a printed poly(3‐hexylthiophene) hole mobility above 0.1 cm2 V−1 s−1 in a bottom‐gate, top‐contact configuration.