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Nature Materials 2, 678–682 (1 October 2003) | doi:10.1038/nmat978

Solution-processed ambipolar organic field-effect transistors and inverters

E. J. Meijer , D. M. de Leeuw , S. Setayesh , E. van Veenendaal , B. -H. Huisman , P. W. M. Blom , J. C. Hummelen , U. Scherf & T. M. Klapwijk

There is ample evidence that organic field-effect transistors have reached a stage where they can be industrialized, analogous to standard metal oxide semiconductor (MOS) transistors. Monocrystalline silicon technology is largely based on complementary MOS (CMOS) structures that use both n-type and p-type transistor channels. This complementary technology has enabled the construction of digital circuits, which operate with a high robustness, low power dissipation and a good noise margin. For the design of efficient organic integrated circuits, there is an urgent need for complementary technology, where both n-type and p-type transistor operation is realized in a single layer, while maintaining the attractiveness of easy solution processing. We demonstrate, by using solution-processed field-effect transistors, that hole transport and electron transport are both generic properties of organic semiconductors. This ambipolar transport is observed in polymers based on interpenetrating networks as well as in narrow bandgap organic semiconductors. We combine the organic ambipolar transistors into functional CMOS-like inverters.