Ultrahigh-gain organic transistors based on van der Waals metal-barrier interlayer-semiconductor junction

Abstract

Intrinsic gain is a vital figure of merit in transistors, closely related to signal amplification, operation voltage, power consumption, and circuit simplification. However, organic thin-film transistors (OTFTs) targeted at high gain have suffered from challenges such as narrow subthreshold operating voltage, low-quality interface, and uncontrollable barrier. Here, we report a van der Waals metal-barrier interlayer-semiconductor junction–based OTFT, which shows ultrahigh performance including ultrahigh gain of ~10 4 , low saturation voltage, negligible hysteresis, and good stability. The high-quality van der Waals–contacted junctions are mainly attributed to patterning EGaIn liquid metal electrodes by low-energy microfluidic processes. The wide-bandgap semiconductor Ga 2 O 3 as barrier interlayer is achieved by in situ surface oxidation of EGaIn electrodes, allowing for an adjustable barrier height and expected thermionic emission properties. The organic inverters with a high gain of 5130 and a simplified current stabilizer are further demonstrated, paving a way for high-gain and low-power organic electronics.