Polymer Electronics

Polymers Applications in ElectronicsPart 2

Applications and Areas of Research Fabrication of organic thin film transistorsNon-volatile memory devices based on organic transistorsDevelopment of novel conjugated polymers for photovoltaic device applications Fabrication of organic photovoltaic cellsFabrication of organic light-emitting devices (OLED)Ferroelectric polymers for thin film devices Gene SensorsPrinted ElectronicsConducting Polymer Actuators and MicropumpsResponsive Membranes/Hybrid Plasticsfocused upon polymer membranes that incorporated electronically conducting polymers and piezoelectric polymers M. Rosado EECE 487 Spring 20092M. Rosado EECE 487 Spring 20093

Scientists at Philips Research have developed a plastic RFID chip that is as thin as paper and no larger than a postage stamp

M. Rosado EECE 487 Spring 20094http://www.research.philips.com/newscenter/pictures/ldm-polelec.htmlPrinted Electronic MethodsFlexoprinting: a high pressure method that is especially well applicable to print on plastic substrates Offset printing: a flat printing technique that makes a high resolution possible Gravure printing: a low pressure printing method that makes high volumes and the use of organic dissolvent possible Rotary screen printing: a method that allows to print in thick layers Coating methods: diverse methods to apply homogeneous and thin layers M. Rosado EECE 487 Spring 20095Process of Printed ElectronicsClean room process - During preparation,contamination might be introduced in the form of salts, polysiloxanes and dust particles spin coating, photo lithography, evaporation, wet etching and others are used for the basic development of polymer electronics

Lab Printing Process Lab type "desktop" printing machines for pad printing, doctor blading and gravure printing as well as screen printing and others are used to develop the basic printing processing know-how for printed electronics

Production Process - Production scale printing process such as flexography printing, offset printing, gravure printing, screen printing and others are used to produce printed electronic products for low cost high volume applications M. Rosado EECE 487 Spring 20096Printable Electronics

M. Rosado EECE 487 Spring 20097Companies have already commercialized the polymer electronic technologyPolyIC offers two product lines: PolyID for printed RFID (radio frequency identification) tags for contactless identification of products PolyLogo for printed Smart objects (combined systems of different polymer electronics components) Printed electronics makes low-cost RFID tags possible that can be used for mass applications. Furthermore, this new technology is also used in displays and complex systems, called smart objects.

Advantages vs. Disadvantages Polymer ElectronicsAdvantagesManufacture w/ relative simple and inexpensive equipment at low costLight weighted and flexible, very durable under stress and flexCan be easily applied over a large surface areaFreedom of choice of their chemical compositionAdaptable in various ways because of printing methods that can be adjusted to current requirements quickly (printed electronics)

M. Rosado EECE 487 Spring 20098DisadvantagesDue to their intrinsic physical properties (i.e. limited mobility of charge carriers), the performance of polymer electronic products lacks the speed of its silicon counterpartResearch is still on going to increase performance for more complex functionalityTo be able to improve performance one should be able to distinguish between problems introduced during preparation, intrinsic material properties, and device characteristics ConclusionResearch in polymer electronics began in 1970sConductive polymer doped with iodinePolymer electronics have the same building blocks as conventional electronics transistors (OFETs), diodes, capacitors, inverters, and polymer ring oscillatorsApplications include organic photovoltaic cells, organic light emitting devices (OLED), polymer transistors, printed electronics and many morePolymer electronics are light, flexible, and less expensive to produce on a mass quantity scale than conventional electronicsPolymer electronics are not a competing product but are considered to be more complementary to its silicon counterpart

M. Rosado EECE 487 Spring 20099Works CitedPolymer Electronics. http://www.polyid.de/en/polymer-electronics.php Organic/Polymer Electronics http://www.research.philips.com/newscenter/pictures/ldm-polelec.htmlResearch Areas. Nanyang Technical University http://www.mse.ntu.edu.sg/Research/?op=organicpe.html Organic Electronics. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_electronicsPolymer Electronics Research Centre. University of Auckland. http://www.perc.auckland.ac.nz/uoa/science/about/departments/chemistry/about/research/perc/research/actuators.cfmBock, Karlheinz. Polymer Electronics Systems Polytronics. IEEE Xplore. Vol. 93, No. 8 August 2005.Knobloch, Alexander and et al. Printed Polymer Transistors. IEEE Xplore website. IEEE Session 4: Polymer Electronic Devices. 2001. PolyIC Newsletter. IC4U Issue 01.2009. March 31,2009. Bettina Bergbauer, Public Relations.T. Sekitani, Y. Noguchi, U. Zschieschang, H. Klauk, T. Someya.Organic transistors manufactured using inkjet technology with sub femtoliter accuracy. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 105, no. 13, pp. 4976-4980, April 2008. M. Rosado EECE 487 Spring 200910