An inkjet-printed passivation layer based on a photocrosslinkable polymer for long-term stable pentacene field-effect transistors

Herein, we investigate the effects of the solvents used in the passivation process on the behavior of pentacene field-effect transistors (FETs) and report on the fabrication of a passivation layer for pentacene FETs via inkjet-printing using photocrosslinkable poly(vinyl alcohol), N-methyl-4(4′formylstyryl) pyridinium methosulfate acetal (SbQ-PVA). The passivated pentacene FETs – composed of inkjet-printed SbQ-PVA containing polystyrene/SiO2 and poly(4-vinyl phenol)/SiO2 dual-layer gate dielectrics – retain their electrical properties for much longer periods than the unpassivated devices. Studies of the device performance show that inkjet-printed passivation is better than spin-coated passivation.