Issue 17, 2024

Orientation and morphology control in acid-catalyzed covalent organic framework thin films

Abstract

As thin films of semiconducting covalent organic frameworks (COFs) are demonstrating utility for ambipolar electronics, channel materials in organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs), and broadband photodetectors, control and modulation of their thin film properties is paramount. In this work, an interfacial growth technique is utilized to synthesize imine TAPB-PDA COF films at both the liquid–liquid interface as well as at the liquid–solid interface on a Si/SiO2 substrate. The concentration of acetic acid catalyst in the aqueous phase is shown to significantly influence the thin film morphology of the liquid–solid growth, with concentrations below 1 M resulting in no film nucleation, concentrations of 1–4 M enabling smooth film formation, and concentrations greater than 4 M resulting in films with a higher density of particulates on the surface. Importantly, while the films grown at the liquid–liquid interface are mixed-orientation, those grown directly at the liquid–solid interface on the Si/SiO2 surface have highly oriented COF layers aligned parallel to the substrate surface. Moreover, this liquid–solid growth process affords TAPB-PDA COF thin films with p-type charge transport having a transconductance of 10 μS at a gate voltage of −0.9 V in an OECT device structure.

Graphical abstract: Orientation and morphology control in acid-catalyzed covalent organic framework thin films

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
15 Nov 2023
Accepted
29 Feb 2024
First published
21 Mar 2024

Nanoscale, 2024,16, 8369-8377

Orientation and morphology control in acid-catalyzed covalent organic framework thin films

D. D. Bhagwandin, K. A. Page, L. D. Tran, Y. Yao, A. Reidell, C. Muratore, Q. Fang, A. Ruditskiy, C. M. Hampton, W. J. Kennedy, L. F. Drummy, Y. Zhong, T. J. Marks, A. Facchetti, J. Lou, H. Koerner, L. A. Baldwin and N. R. Glavin, Nanoscale, 2024, 16, 8369 DOI: 10.1039/D3NR05798D

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