The Polymer Society of Korea

Abstract

Sensing infrared (IR) light has become a key technology in various applications such as biomedical systems, autonomous cars, military devices, etc. Currently, such systems are composed of inorganic IR detectors, which have the demerit of being rigid and heavyweight. On this account, organic IR detectors with flexibility and lightweight features have attracted keen interest. However, owing to the intrinsically narrow energy level (gap) in the IR range, semiconducting and/or conducting polymers with an optical absorption in the IR range could not properly work as an active layer in the two-terminal or three-terminal devices. To overcome this fundamental issue, we have proposed a concept of gate-sensing layer (GSL) that plays a role in sensing IR, which is placed in the part of gate-insulating layers. This presentation demonstrates the fundamental aspects of GSL-based organic phototransistors and discusses recent experimental results including new materials and device structures.