From synthesis to device fabrication: elucidating the structural and electronic properties of C7-BTBT-C7

We report the polymorph investigation, crystallographic study and fabrication of organic field-effect transistors (OFETs) in solution-processed thin films of a prototypical organic semiconductor, i.e., 2,7-diheptylbenzo[b]benzo[4,5]thieno[2,3-d]thiophene (C7-BTBT-C7). We found that this molecule self-assembles solely into one type of stable crystal form, regardless of the experimental conditions employed when using conventional and non-conventional methods of crystallization. The integration of blends of C7-BTBT-C7 with polystyrene as active materials in OFETs fabricated using a solution shearing technique led to a field-effect mobility of 1.42 ± 0.45 cm2 V−1 s−1 in the saturation regime when a coating speed of 10 mm s−1 was employed. The intrinsic structural properties control the overlap of the frontier orbitals, thereby affecting the device performance. The interplay between the crystal packing, thin film morphology and uniformity and its impact on the device performance are reported.