Effect of Laser-Induced Direct Micropatterning on Polymer Optoelectronic Devices

Abstract

Solution-processed polymer devices have been studied as a low-cost alternative to the conventional vacuum-processed organic devices. However, forming a specific pattern on polymer semiconductor films without costly lithography is still challenging. Herein, we report a low-cost direct patterning method for polymer optoelectronic devices, which can successfully engrave designated patterns on the polymer semiconductor layer regardless of its size and even after device encapsulation. Irradiation of a 100 ns pulse laser forms high-resolution patterns on devices such as polymer light-emitting diodes and polymer memory devices. The biggest advantage of the proposed patterning method is that it does not produce any physical damage in the device, such as leakage current or degraded light-emitting efficiency. Analysis confirms that the laser-induced heat alters the solid or crystal structure of the polymer semiconducting layers so that the designated areas of the polymer devices can be selectively and deliberately deactivated. We demonstrate the usability of the developed laser-induced direct-patterning method on the polymer devices by engraving a digital image onto “ON-state” light-emitting devices and by generating multiple states onto a 4 × 4 matrix polymer nonvolatile memory.

Fully vacuum‐free semitransparent polymer solar cells for power‐generating window with pure achromatic appealing

“…After 10 min of plasma treatment, a 20‐nm ZnO layer was prepared on the ITO layer by spin‐coating the ZnO sol‐gel solution 30 . Successively, polyethylenimine ethoxylated (PEIE; 80% ethoxylated solution, Sigma‐Aldrich) dissolved in 2‐methoxy ethanol (99%, Sigma‐Aldrich) was spin‐coated at 4000 rpm for efficient electron extraction on a bottom electrode 30 . For the active layer of the solution‐processed polymer PVs, a mixture of 8‐mg PTB7 (OS0007, 1‐material) and 12‐mg PC 71 BM (99%, OSM) was dissolved in 970 μl of chlorobenzene (ACS, 99.5%, Alfa Aesar) and 30 μl of 1,8‐Diiodooctane (98%, Sigma‐Aldrich) solution by stirring at 60°C for 1 day.…”

“…To fabricate inverted polymer solar cells, we started with cleaning indium tin oxide (ITO; 140 nm, 15 Ω/sq; Geomatec Co.) glass substrates with a 2 × 2 mm 2 active area in an ultrasonic bath with acetone and isopropyl alcohol in sequence. After 10 min of plasma treatment, a 20‐nm ZnO layer was prepared on the ITO layer by spin‐coating the ZnO sol‐gel solution 30 . Successively, polyethylenimine ethoxylated (PEIE; 80% ethoxylated solution, Sigma‐Aldrich) dissolved in 2‐methoxy ethanol (99%, Sigma‐Aldrich) was spin‐coated at 4000 rpm for efficient electron extraction on a bottom electrode 30 .…”

Strategic Advances in Spatiotemporal Control of Bioinspired Phenolic Chemistries in Materials Science

“…Micropatterning and substrate engineering are indispensable tools in the development of microelectronics, photonics, microdevices, tissue engineering constructs, and so on. [216,217] Recently, the tying of micropatterning and mussel-inspired chemistries has attracted much attention, permitting versatility in creating spatially defined chemical compositions and/or topographic features. Adding to this, PDA micropatterns further allow for site-specific immobilization of metal particles, chemical molecules, proteins, and cells, thus advancing applications, including but not limited to, biochips and biosensors.…”

Multifunctional Structured Platforms: From Patterning of Polymer-Based Films to Their Subsequent Filling with Various Nanomaterials

“…Direct laser writing (DLW) is a photolithographic technique that can create, on a photosensitive material, permanent micro-and nano-patterns with different (hierarchical) In the past years, patterned surfaces fabricated using photolithography have been used in biomedical devices [36], cell growth [37], or organic optoelectronics [38,39], just to name a few examples, and it is clear that one of the main requirements for a "healthy" development of novel applications in diverse fields of nanotechnology consists of the production of small patterned features with tailored properties and high resolution over a large area. In order to achieve such patterns through photolithography, a top-quality photomask displaying extremely fine features can be held closely to the resist material for transferring the design on the polymeric substrate by breaking down the polymer chains.…”