Tunneling through a Metal/Polymer Interface Containing a Thin Oxide Layer: Discussion of the Consequences of Oxide Presence on Charge Injection

The charge injection from oxidized metal electrodes into conjugated polymer thin films is calculated and compared with ideal metal/polymer interfaces. The presence of the oxide layer has a major influence on the magnitude of the tunneling current as well as on its behavior with applied voltage. It was also found that the fitting of the simple Fowler-Nordheim model for triangular barriers to the obtained current-voltage data from the oxidized interfaces leads to incorrect values of the potential barrier height at the metal/polymer interface. Prediction and its consequences on charge injection control in organic devices are discussed.