Rapid Prototyping for Accelerated Establishment of Film Processing‐Performance Relationships in Silicon Phthalocyanine OFETs

Abstract

Understanding the complex relationships underlying the performance of organic electronic devices, such as organic field‐effect transistors (OFETs), requires researchers to navigate a multi‐dimensional parameter space that includes material design, solution formulation, fabrication parameters, and device geometry. Herein, a recently developed materials acceleration platform is demonstrated, named the RoboMapper, to perform direct on‐chip fabrication of OFETs by ultrasonic meniscus printing using silicon phthalocyanine (SiPc) derivatives as the semiconductor. OFETs using bis(tri‐n‐butylsilyl oxide) SiPc ((3BS)2‐SiPc) exhibited the best device performance characterized by the highest electron field‐effect mobility (µe). Through optical microscopy and grazing‐incidence wide‐angle X‐ray scattering (GIWAXS), the favorable performance of (3BS)2‐SiPc is attributed to the specific film morphology and molecular packing achieved with optimal print conditions. Investigating the impact of deposition parameters reveals the crucial role of solvent evaporation rate and print speed in achieving high‐quality film formation. Overall, optimal fabrication conditions for (3BS)2‐SiPc devices include slow print speeds and fast evaporating solutions achieved by using a mixture of co‐solvents and an elevated substrate temperature. The results of this work reveal distinct relationships between deposition conditions, film properties, and device performance for each SiPc derivative and emphasize the necessity of high throughput experimentation to comprehensively understand process‐performance relationships in organic semiconductors.