Compared to inorganic semiconductors, organic semiconductors have the characteristics of being flexible and lightweight, and are expected to be used in flexible devices and the like.Semiconductor devices are manufactured by combining p-type semiconductors and n-type semiconductors.However, as organic semiconductors, p-type semiconductors have been mainly manufactured so far, and the types of n-type semiconductors are very limited.
This time, Professor Toshiki Tajima of the Department of Applied Chemistry, Shibaura Institute of Technology announced that he has developed a new method for easily synthesizing n-type organic semiconductors.It is said that this method can be applied to the development of many n-type organic semiconductors, and it is expected that research and development for the spread of organic semiconductors will be further accelerated.
The n-type organic semiconductor can be synthesized by introducing fluorine into the p-type organic semiconductor.However, due to the complexity of its synthesis, stable production has been difficult.On the other hand, in this method, hexafluorobenzene is electrolytically reduced to easily synthesize a perfluoropolyphenylene gel without requiring a special catalyst or a leaving group.Perfluoropolyphenylene has succeeded in completely fluorinating a conductive polymer useful as an organic semiconductor, and further, by drying and washing this gel, a colorless and transparent thin film can be synthesized.
Examination of the atomic composition of the synthesized thin film revealed that it was 60% carbon and 40% fluorine, and it was clear that it was a soft perfluoropolyphenylene with few crosslinks.Furthermore, elemental mapping confirmed that fluorine was evenly distributed throughout the film.
In the future, we will clarify the scope of application of this method, which makes it possible to manufacture n-type organic semiconductors more easily and at lower cost, through joint research with companies, and generate perfluoropolyphenylene sulfide and thin films. The company plans to search for uses for things.
