Enhancement of Charge Injection in Organic Field-Effect Transistors Through Semiconducting Organic Buffer Layer

We investigate the effect of a semiconducting organic buffer layer (SOBL) on the injection and transport of charges in organic field-effect transistors (OFETs). Here, two different injection barriers at the source/organic semiconductor interface are respectively studied with the aid of a numerical simulation: one is intermediate (0.4 eV), and the other is large energy barriers (0.6 eV). The introduction of nanostructure buffer layer, or SOBL, exhibits the decrease of potential loss at the contact interfaces, improving the electrical performance of the OFETs. It is also found that the energy level as well as the mobility of the SOBL plays an important role in determining the injection properties at the metal/organic hetero-interfaces and thus improving the device performance. Our systematic investigation on the injection barrier by the introduction of the nanostructure buffer layer will provide a useful guideline for the fabrication of high-performance FETs with molecular semiconductors.