Issue 3, 2019

Asymmetrical hole/electron transport in donor–acceptor mixed-stack cocrystals

Abstract

Effective hole and electron transfer of various mixed-stack donor–acceptor cocrystals is investigated on the basis of the partition theory, and it is explained why most of these cocrystals, particularly tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ) complexes, show only electron transport in the transistors. The lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) of TCNQ has a stripe symmetry, but the highest occupied molecular orbitals (HOMOs) of acenes, phenes, and thienoacenes have a horizontal node, and the intermolecular transfer between these approximately orthogonal orbitals is very small. However, the next HOMOs of these donors have the same symmetry as the TCNQ LUMO to mediate the electron transport. Electron transport is a universal rule, but it is violated when the molecules are largely tilted or when lower symmetry molecules such as dimethyldicyanoquinonediimine are used instead of TCNQ, where ambipolar transport is observed. Even in this case, cancellation by the second bridge orbital restores monopolar transport as exemplified by the complicated temperature dependence of (anthracene)(TCNQ) transistors. Owing to the small energy intervals of the occupied levels and many node structures of the unoccupied levels, unoccupied orbitals do not work well as bridge orbitals, and pure hole-only transport is unlikely in DA crystals. We, however, show experimental results on the quaterthiophene (4T) complex of TCNQ, which exceptionally exhibits hole transport.

Graphical abstract: Asymmetrical hole/electron transport in donor–acceptor mixed-stack cocrystals

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
15 oct. 2018
Accepted
11 dic. 2018
First published
11 dic. 2018

J. Mater. Chem. C, 2019,7, 567-577

Asymmetrical hole/electron transport in donor–acceptor mixed-stack cocrystals

R. Sato, T. Kawamoto and T. Mori, J. Mater. Chem. C, 2019, 7, 567 DOI: 10.1039/C8TC05190A

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements