Effects of the solvent polarity of a polymeric insulator on field-effect mobility in an organic thin-film transistor

We have investigated effects of the solvent polarity of a polymeric insulator on field-effect mobility in a pentacene used thin-film transistor (TFT). In our work, we used a poly(4-vinylphenol) (PVP) as a gate insulator to dissolve three different solvents. As the solvent polarity of the PVP solution is increased, the field-effect mobility is dramatically increased by a factor of five (from 0.30 cm2/Vs to 1.51 cm2/Vs). We found that an increase of polar solvents in polymeric insulators results in improved electrical properties in the organic TFTs.

Graphical abstractFigure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slideHighlights► The effect of solvent polarity on the field-effect mobility was described. ► As increasing the solvent polarity, mobility was found to be dramatically increased. ► The mobility in the organic transistor with a polymeric insulator reaches 1.51 cm2/Vs. ► This work can give a promising building block for the high performance organic devices.