Effects of Humidity on Unencapsulated Poly(thiophene) Thin Film Transistors

Published

March 13, 2006

Author(s)

Michael L. Chabinyc, Fred Endicott, B D. Vogt, Dean DeLongchamp, Eric K. Lin, Yiliang Wu, Ping Liu, Beng S. Ong

Abstract

The effects of humidity on unencapsulated polymeric thin-film transistors (TFTs) were investigated. TFTs were fabricated on glass substrates with inorganic gate dielectric and a semiconducting layer of poly[5,5 -bis(3-dodecyl-2-thienyl)-2,2 -bithiophene], PQT-12. The field effect mobility of PQT-12 TFTs decreases and the rate of trapping of charge carriers increases under increasing humidity. The amount of water absorbed by the PQT-12 films was measured using a quartz crystal microbalance. Thin films of PQT-12 absorb comparable amounts of water to the carrier concentration in TFTs under routine operating conditions (humidity of 30% R.H. and gate voltage of -30 V); the changes in electrical characteristics under humid atmospheres are attributed to the interaction of absorbed water with the carriers in the film.

Citation

Applied Physics Letters

Volume

88 No 11

Pub Type

Journals

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Keywords

field effect, humidity, poly(3-hexyl thiophene), polymer, semiconductor, transistor

Citation

Chabinyc, M. , Endicott, F. , Vogt, B. , DeLongchamp, D. , Lin, E. , Wu, Y. , Liu, P. and Ong, B. (2006), Effects of Humidity on Unencapsulated Poly(thiophene) Thin Film Transistors, Applied Physics Letters, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=852577 (Accessed October 10, 2025)