Solution-processable thin layer graphene is an intriguing nanomaterial with tremendous potential for electronic applications. In this work, we demonstrate that electrochemical exfoliation of graphite furnishes graphene sheets of high quality. The electrochemically exfoliated graphene (EG) contains a high yield (>80%) of one- to three-layer graphene flakes with high C/O ratio of 12.3 and low sheet resistance (4.8 kΩ/□ for a single EG sheet). Due to the solution processability of EG, a vacuum filtration method in association with dry transfer is introduced to produce large-area and highly conductive graphene films on various substrates. Moreover, we demonstrate that the patterned EG can serve as high-performance source/drain electrodes for organic field-effect transistors.
This Review details synthetic routes toward and properties of insoluble polymeric organic semiconductors obtained through desolubilization strategies. Typical applications include fixation of donor-acceptor bulk-heterojunction morphologies in organic photovoltaic cells, cross-linking of charge transport materials and active emitters in light emitting diodes or similar devices, and immobilization of morphologies in field effect transistors. A second important application is the structuring of organic semiconductors, using them as photoresists. After desolubilization, removal of the nonirradiated resist leads to elevated, micron-sized features of the semiconductor. In this Review, different strategies for desolubilization are covered. By photochemical or thermal cleavage of solubility-mediating groups such as esters, sulfonium salts, amides, ethers, and acetals or by retro-Diels-Alder reactions, volatile elimination products and the insoluble semiconductor are formed. In another case, desolubilization is achieved by cross-linking via functional groups present in the polymer side chains including vinyl, halide, silicone, boronic acid, and azide functionalities, which polymerize thermally or photochemically. Alternatively, small molecular additives such as photoacids, oligothiols, or oligoazides result in network formation in combination with compatible functional groups present in the immobilizable polymers. Advantages and disadvantages of the respective methods are discussed.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.