Reducing dynamic disorder in small-molecule organic semiconductors by suppressing large-amplitude thermal motions

Steffen Illig (), Alexander S. Eggeman, Alessandro Troisi, Lang Jiang, Chris Warwick, Mark Nikolka, Guillaume Schweicher, Stephen G. Yeates, Yves Henri Geerts, John E. Anthony and Henning Sirringhaus ()
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Steffen Illig: Optoelectronics Group, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge
Alexander S. Eggeman: University of Cambridge
Alessandro Troisi: University of Warwick
Lang Jiang: Optoelectronics Group, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge
Chris Warwick: Optoelectronics Group, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge
Mark Nikolka: Optoelectronics Group, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge
Guillaume Schweicher: Optoelectronics Group, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge
Stephen G. Yeates: School of Chemistry, University of Manchester
Yves Henri Geerts: Faculté des Sciences, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Boulevard du Triomphe, Brussels 1050, Belgium
John E. Anthony: University of Kentucky
Henning Sirringhaus: Optoelectronics Group, Cavendish Laboratory, University of Cambridge

Nature Communications, 2016, vol. 7, issue 1, 1-10

Abstract: Abstract Thermal vibrations and the dynamic disorder they create can detrimentally affect the transport properties of van der Waals bonded molecular semiconductors. The low-energy nature of these vibrations makes it difficult to access them experimentally, which is why we still lack clear molecular design rules to control and reduce dynamic disorder. In this study we discuss the promising organic semiconductors rubrene, 2,7-dioctyl[1]benzothieno[3,2-b][1]benzothio-phene and 2,9-di-decyl-dinaphtho-[2,3-b:20,30-f]-thieno-[3,2-b]-thiophene in terms of an exceptionally low degree of dynamic disorder. In particular, we analyse diffuse scattering in transmission electron microscopy, to show that small molecules that have their side chains attached along the long axis of their conjugated core are better encapsulated in their crystal structure, which helps reduce large-amplitude thermal motions. Our work provides a general strategy for the design of new classes of very high mobility organic semiconductors with a low degree of dynamic disorder.

Date: 2016
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DOI: 10.1038/ncomms10736

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