title: Surface-Mediated Solidification of a Semiconducting Polymer during Time-Controlled Spin-Coating.
abstract: Spin-casting a polymer semiconductor solution over a short period of only a few seconds dramatically improved the molecular ordering and charge transport properties of the resulting semiconductor thin films. In this process, it was quite important to halt spinning before the drying line propagation had begun. Here, we elucidated the effects of the substrate surface characteristics on the drying kinetics during spin-coating, systematically investigated the microstructural evolution during semiconducting polymer solidification, and evaluated the performances of the resulting polymer field-effect transistors. We demonstrated that the spin time required to enhance the molecular ordering and electrical properties of the polythiophene thin films was strongly correlated with the solidification onset time, which was altered by surface treatments introduced onto the substrate surfaces.
authors.affiliation: Department of Energy and Chemical Engineering, Incheon National University , Incheon 22012, Korea.
authors.forename: Jin Yeong
authors.initials: JY
authors.lastname: Na
authors.affiliation: Center for Advanced Soft Electronics and Department of Chemical Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology , Pohang 37673, Korea.
authors.forename: Boseok
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology , Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, United States.
authors.forename: Seung Goo
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Center for Advanced Soft Electronics and Department of Chemical Engineering, Pohang University of Science and Technology , Pohang 37673, Korea.
authors.forename: Kilwon
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0321-3629
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.affiliation: Department of Energy and Chemical Engineering, Incheon National University , Incheon 22012, Korea.
authors.forename: Yeong Don
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1615-689X
authors.initials: YD
authors.lastname: Park
keywords: organic field-effect transistor; polythiophene; solidification; spin-coating; surface