High and balanced hole and electron mobilities from ambipolar thin-film transistors based on nitrogen-containing oligoacences.

We demonstrate a strategy for designing high-performance, ambipolar, acene-based field-effect transistor (FET) materials, which is based on the replacement of C-H moieties by nitrogen atoms in oligoacenes. By using this strategy, two organic semiconductors, 6,13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)anthradipyridine (1) and 8,9,10,11-tetrafluoro-6,13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)-1-azapentacene (3), were synthesized and their FET characteristics studied. Both materials exhibit high and balanced hole and electron mobilities, 1 having µ(h) and µ(e) of 0.11 and 0.15 cm(2)/V·s and 3 having µ(h) and µ(e) of 0.08 and 0.09 cm(2)/V·s, respectively. The successful demonstration of high and balanced ambipolar FET properties from nitrogen-containing oligoacenes opens up new opportunities for designing high-performance ambipolar organic semiconductors.

Synthesis of tetrachloro-azapentacene as an ambipolar organic semiconductor with high and balanced carrier mobilities.

Two new azapentacene derivatives 9,10-dibromo-6,13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)-1-azapentacene (a) and 8,9,10,11-tetrachloro-6,13-bis(triisopropylsilylethynyl)-1-azapentacene (b) were synthesized, and their FET properties were investigated. Compound b exhibits high and balanced ambipolar transport properties, with the hole and electron mobilities reaching up to 0.12 and 0.14 cm(2) V(-1) s(-1), respectively. This work suggests that chlorination to the N-heteropentacene framework is an efficient way for producing high performance ambipolar organic semiconductors.