Redox‐Induced Asymmetric Electrical Characteristics of Ferrocene‐Alkanethiolate Molecular Devices on Rigid and Flexible Substrates

The electrical properties of ferrocene‐alkanethiolate self‐assembled monolayers (SAMs) on a high yield solid‐state device structure are investigated. The devices are fabricated using a conductive polymer interlayer between the top electrode and the SAM on both silicon‐based rigid substrates and plastic‐based flexible substrates. Asymmetric electrical transport characteristics that originate from the ferrocene moieties are observed. In particular, a distinctive temperature dependence of the current (i.e., a decrease in current density as temperature increases) at a large reverse bias, which is associated with the redox reaction of ferrocene groups in the molecular junction, is found. It is further demonstrated that the molecular devices can function on flexible substrates under various mechanical stress configurations with consistent electrical characteristics. This study enhances the understanding of asymmetric molecules and may lead to the development of functional molecular electronic devices on both rigid and flexible substrates.     

Photoconduction: Very Large Photoconduction Enhancement Upon Self‐Assembly of a New Triindole Derivative in Solution‐Processed Films (Adv. Funct. Mater. 4/2011)

A new carbazole‐related small molecule exhibiting self‐assembly into ordered nanostructures in solution‐processed cast films has been synthesized and its charge‐photogeneration and ‐transport properties have been investigated. Large photoconductivity was measured in the amorphous state while an enormous improvement in the photoconduction properties was observed when the molecules spontaneously organized. Photocurrents increased upon self‐assembly by up to four orders of magnitude, mostly due to the drastic enhancement of the charge photogeneration. A greatly favorable arrangement of the aromatic cores in the resulting nanostructures, which were characterized by X‐ray analysis, may explain these improvements. Photocurrents of mA cm^?2, on/off ratios of 10⁴ and quantum efficiencies of unity at low field and light intensity, which are among the best values reported to date, along with the simplicity of fabrication, give this readily‐available organic system great potential for use in plastic optoelectronic devices.     

Reversible Switching Phenomenon in Diarylethene Molecular Devices with Reduced Graphene Oxide Electrodes on Flexible Substrates

Photoswitching molecular electronic devices with reduced graphene oxide (rGO) top electrodes on flexible substrates are fabricated and characterized. It has been reported previously that diarylethene molecular devices with poly‐(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) stabilized with poly‐(4‐styrenesulfonic acid)/Au top electrodes can hold two stable electrical conductance states when the devices are exposed to UV or visible light during device fabrication. However, those devices fail to show the reversible switching phenomenon in response to illumination after device fabrication. By employing conducting and transparent rGO top electrodes, it is demonstrated that the diarylethene molecular devices show a reversible switching phenomenon, i.e., the fabricated devices change their conductance state in response to the alternating illumination with UV and visible light. Furthermore, the molecular devices with rGO top electrodes also exhibit good longtime stability and reliable electrical characteristics when subjected to various mechanical stresses (bending radius down to 5 mm and bending cycle over 10⁴).     

Photovoltaic Devices: Highly Conductive PEDOT:PSS Electrode with Optimized Solvent and Thermal Post‐Treatment for ITO‐Free Organic Solar Cells (Adv. Funct. Mater. 6/2011)

Highly conductive poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) films as stand‐alone electrodes for organic solar cells have been optimized using a solvent post‐treatment method. The treated PEDOT:PSS films show enhanced conductivities up to 1418 S cm^?1, accompanied by structural and chemical changes. The effect of the solvent treatment on PEDOT:PSS has been investigated in detail and is shown to cause a reduction of insulating PSS in the conductive polymer layer. Using these optimized electrodes, ITO‐free, small molecule organic solar cells with a zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc):fullerene C₆₀ bulk heterojunction have been produced on glass and PET substrates. The system was further improved by pre‐heating the PEDOT:PSS electrodes, which enhanced the power conversion efficiency to the values obtained for solar cells on ITO electrodes. The results show that optimized PEDOT:PSS with solvent and thermal post‐treatment can be a very promising electrode material for highly efficient flexible ITO‐free organic solar cells.