Process for metal deposition for microelectronic interconnections

A method for forming interconnections in microelectronic devices, including interconnections through small vias between different layers in the microelectronic devices include the spin coating of a film comprising a polyoxometalate and an organic material on the substrate. The film is optionally patterned by lithography, the polymer is removed, and the polyoxometalate is reduced to a metal layer. The metal layer may in one embodiment provide a nucleating zone for the deposition of metal.Board of Regents, University of Texas Syste

Fiber-shaped electronic devices

Textile electronics embedded in clothing represent an exciting new frontier for modern healthcare and communication systems. Fundamental to the development of these textile electronics is the development of the fibers forming the cloths into electronic devices. An electronic fiber must undergo diverse scrutiny for its selection for a multifunctional textile, viz., from the material selection to the device architecture, from the wearability to mechanical stresses, and from the environmental compatibility to the end-use management. Herein, the performance requirements of fiber-shaped electronics are reviewed considering the characteristics of single electronic fibers and their assemblies in smart clothing. Broadly, this article includes i) processing strategies of electronic fibers with required properties from precursor to material, ii) the state-of-art of current fiber-shaped electronics emphasizing light-emitting devices, solar cells, sensors, nanogenerators, supercapacitors storage, and chromatic devices, iii) mechanisms involved in the operation of the above devices, iv) limitations of the current materials and device manufacturing techniques to achieve the target performance, and v) the knowledge gap that must be minimized prior to their deployment. Lessons learned from this review with regard to the challenges and prospects for developing fiber-shaped electronic components are presented as directions for future research on wearable electronics

A Silanol-Functionalized Polyoxometalate with Excellent Electron Transfer Mediating Behavior to ZnO and TiO 2 Cathode Interlayers for Highly Efficient and Extremely Stable Polymer Solar Cells

Combining high efficiency and long lifetime under ambient conditions still poses a major challenge towards commercialization of polymer solar cells. Here we report a facile strategy that can simultaneously enhance the efficiency and temporal stability of inverted photovoltaic architectures. Inclusion of a silanol-functionalized organic–inorganic hybrid polyoxometalate derived from a PW9O34 lacunary phosphotungstate anion, namely (nBu4N)3[PW9O34(tBuSiOH)3], significantly increases the effectiveness of the electron collecting interface, which consists of a metal oxide such as titanium dioxide or zinc oxide, and leads to a high efficiency of 6.51% for single-junction structures based on poly(3-hexylthiophene):indene-C60 bisadduct (P3HT:IC60BA) blends. The above favourable outcome stems from a large decrease in the work function, an effective surface passivation and a decrease in the surface energy of metal oxides which synergistically result in the outstanding electron transfer mediating capability of the functionalized polyoxometalate. In addition, the insertion of a silanol-functionalized polyoxometalate layer significantly enhances the ambient stability of unencapsulated devices which retain nearly 90% of their original efficiencies (T90) after 1000 hours

MULTIELECTRON PHOTOREDUCTION OF THE HETEROPOLYANIONS P2W18O62 �, PV2W10O40 �, PV2MO10O40 �.

SOME 2:18 AND 1:12 HETEROPOLYANIONS ARE PHOTOREDUCED UNDER ILLUMINATION WITH UVAND NEAR VISIBLE LIGHT IN PRESENCE OF A VARIETY OF ORGANIC SUBSTANCES. IN THE CASE OF P2W18O626- THE PHOTOREDUCTION PROCEEDS STEPWISE AND LEADS TO THE FORMATION OF PRODUCTS THAT ARE ABLE, FROM A THERMODYNAMIC POINT OF VIEW, TO REDUCE WATER PRODUCING HYDROGEN H2-EVOLUTION INDEED TAKES PLACE WITH AND WITHOUT PT CATALYST. RATE CONSTANTS FOR THIS EVOLUTION ARE A FUNCTION OF REDUCTION STEP, PH AND PT CATALYST PRESENCE AND ARE OF THE ORDER OF 10-4 5-1. REPLACEMENT OF W OR MOWITH ATOMS IN 1:12 WITH AND WITHOUT PT CATALYS. RATE CONSTANTS FOR THIS EVOLUTION ARE A FUNCTION OF REDUCTIO PH AND PT CATALYST PRESENCE AND ARE OF THE ORDEROF 10-4 5-1. REPLACEMENT OF W O ATOMS IN 1:12 HETEROPOLYANIONS SHIFTS THEIR ABSORPTION SPECTRA TOWARD THE VISIBLE ALLOWING THEIR PHOTOREDUCTION WITH CONCOMITANT OXIDATION OF ORGANIC COMPOUNDS WITH LIGHT OF THIS AREA. NEVERTHELESS, THE PHOTOREDUCTION PROCEEDS WITH LOWER QUANTUM YIELD UNDER ILLUMINATION AT O -> V BANDS (Λ > 400NM) IN COMPARISON TO THE CORRESPONDING 0 -> W AND 0 -> MO BANDS. MOREOVER, NO MORE THAN 2 ELECTRONS ARE ADDED TO THE TWO MIXED HETEROPOLYANIONS AND NO H2 IS PRODUCED, WITH LIGHT Λ > 400NM.ΟΡΙΣΜΕΝΑ 2:18 ΚΑΙ 1:12 ΕΤΕΡΟΠΟΛΥΟΝΙΟΝΤΑ ΦΩΤΟΑΝΑΓΟΝΤΑΙ ΟΤΑΝ ΦΩΤΙΣΘΟΥΝ ΜΕ ΦΩΣ ΤΗΣΠΕΡΙΟΧΗΣ ΤΟΥ ΥΠΕΡΙΩΔΟΥΣ ΚΑΙ ΚΟΝΤΙΝΟΥ ΟΡΑΤΟΥ ΠΑΡΟΥΣΙΑ ΠΟΙΚΙΛΙΑΣ ΟΡΓΑΝΙΚΩΝ ΟΥΣΙΩΝ. ΣΤΗΝ ΠΕΡΙΠΤΩΣΗ ΤΟΥ P2W180626 - Η ΦΩΤΟΑΝΑΓΩΓΗ ΠΡΟΧΩΡΕΙ ΚΑΤΑ ΣΤΑΔΙΑ ΚΑΙ ΟΔΗΓΕΙΣΤΟ ΣΧΗΜΑΤΙΣΜΟ ΠΡΟΙΟΝΤΩΝ ΙΚΑΝΩΝ, ΑΠΟ ΘΕΡΜΟΔΥΝΑΜΙΚΗ ΑΠΟΨΗ, ΝΑ ΠΡΟΚΑΛΕΣΟΥΝ ΑΝΑΓΩΓΗ ΤΟΥ Η2Ο ΠΑΡΑΓΟΝΤΑΣ Η2. ΠΑΡΑΓΩΓΗ Η2 ΠΡΑΓΜΑΤΙ ΛΑΜΒΑΝΕΙ ΧΩΡΑ ΤΟΣΟ ΠΑΡΟΥΣΙΑ ΟΣΟ ΚΑΙ ΑΠΟΥΣΙΑ ΚΑΤΑΛΥΤΗ ΡΤ. ΟΙ ΣΤΑΘΕΡΕΣ ΤΑΧΥΤΗΤΑΣ ΓΙΑ ΤΗΝ ΠΑΡΑΓΩΓΗ ΑΥΤΗ ΗΤΑΝ ΣΥΝΑΡΤΗΣΗ ΤΟΥ ΑΝΑΓΩΓΙΚΟΥ ΣΤΑΔΙΟΥ, ΤΟΥ ΡΗ ΚΑΙ ΤΗΣ ΠΑΡΟΥΣΙΑΣ ΚΑΤΑΛΥΤΗ ΡΤ ΚΑΙ ΗΤΑΝ ΤΗΣ ΤΑΞΗΣ ΤΟΥ 10-4 5-1. ΑΝΤΙΚΑΤΑΣΤΑΣΗ ΑΤΟΜΩΝ ΜΟ 'Η W ΑΠΟ ΑΤΟΜΑ V ΣΕ 1:12 ΕΤΕΡΟΠΟΛΥΑΝΙΟΝΤΑ ΜΕΤΑΤΟΠΙΖΕΙ ΤΟ ΦΑΣΜΑ ΑΠΟΡΡΟΦΗΣΗΣ ΤΟΥΣ ΠΡΟΣ ΤΟ ΟΡΑΤΟ ΚΑΘΙΣΤΩΝΤΑΣ ΔΥΝΑΤΗ ΤΗΝ ΦΩΤΟΑΝΑΓΩΓΗ ΤΟΥΣ ΜΕ ΠΑΡΑΛΛΗΛΗ ΟΞΕΙΔΩΣΗ ΟΡΓΑΝΙΚΩΝ ΕΝΩΣΕΩΝ ΜΕ ΦΩΣ ΤΗΣ ΠΕΡΙΟΧΗΣΑΥΤΗΣ. Η ΦΩΤΟΑΝΑΓΩΓΗ ΑΥΤΗ ΟΜΩΣ ΠΡΟΧΩΡΕΙ ΜΕ ΜΙΚΡΟΤΕΡΗ ΚΒΑΝΤΙΚΗ ΑΠΟΔΟΣΗ ΚΑΤΑ ΤΟΝΦΩΤΙΣΜΟ ΣΤΙΣ ΤΑΙΝΙΕΣ Ο -> V (Λ > 400ΝΜ) ΣΕ ΣΥΓΚΡΙΣΗ ΜΕ ΤΙΣ ΑΝΤΙΣΤΟΙΧΕΣ ΤΑΙΝΙΕΣΟ -> W ΚΑΙ O -> MO. ΕΠΙΣΗΣ ΜΕ ΦΩΣ Λ > 400ΝΜ ΔΕΝ ΠΡΟΣΤΙΘΕΝΤΑΙ ΠΕΡΙΣΣΟΤΕΡΑ ΑΠΟ 2ΗΛΕΚΤΡΟΝΙΑ ΣΤΑ ΔΥΟ ΜΙΚΤΑ ΕΤΕΡΟΠΟΛΥΑΝΙΟΝΤΑ ΚΑΙ ΔΕΝ ΠΑΡΑΓΕΤΑΙ Η2

A water soluble inorganic molecular oxide as a novel efficient electron injection layer for hybrid light-emitting diodes (HyLEDs)

We demonstrate that electron injection in single-layer polyfluorene based polymer light-emitting diodes (PLEDs) can be significantly enhanced by inserting a thin (&lt;10 nm) inorganic polyoxometalate (POM) molecular oxide layer between the polymer layer and an aluminum cathode. Hydrophilic POM was spin-cast from methanol, an orthogonal solvent with regard to the hydrophobic polymer layer underneath, to form the thin cathode interfacial/electron injection layer. A lower turn-on and operating voltage and a higher luminance and current density was obtained in the POM-modified hybrid LEDs (HyLEDs) which are associated with the electron injection barrier reduction in the modified polymer/Al interface, evidenced by the increased open circuit voltage from photovoltaic measurements. These results demonstrate the potential of polyoxometalates as novel, stable cathode interfacial layers for efficient electron injection/transport in high performance HyLEDs.</p

Surface modification for site-directed covalent attachment of molecules via strain-promoted azide-alkyne click-chemistry reaction and photolithography

Copper-free "click" chemistry on appropriately modified surfaces and photolithography were explored for site directed immobilization of biomolecules. The surfaces were modified either with self-assembled monolayers of silanes or an epoxy resin and then used as they were or further modified through adsorption of rabbit gammaglobulins to increase their reactive amine-content. All surfaces were then reacted with a succinimidyl ester cyclooctyne derivative and the efficiency of each modification approach was determined through click reaction with an azide derivative of fluorescein. It was found that the highest fluorescence signal was provided by the surface that had been modified with the epoxy resin and then coated with rabbit gamma-globulins. Surfaces prepared following the different modification procedures have been analyzed with ToF-SIMS to gain insight into the chemical changes of the surfaces after each step of the modification procedure. Analysis of intensities of characteristic ions signals confirmed the successful outcome of click reaction following the proposed surface modification approach. In addition, the ability to define through photolithography areas for site-directed immobilization of biomolecules onto surfaces modified with the succinimidyl ester cyclooctyne derivative was demonstrated through the creation of two molecules patterns

Effect of triphenylsulfonium triflate addition in wide band-gap polymer light-emitting diodes: improved charge injection, transport and electroplex-induced emission tuning

The presence of mobile anions in the emitting layer of polymer-based OLEDs has been proven to influence substantially the injection characteristics of the diode. In this work we report on the improvement of both injection and transport of charge carriers in blue emitting poly[2-(6-cyano-6-methyl-heptyloxy)-1,4- phenylene] (CN-PPP) based OLEDs upon insertion of the all-organic triphenylsulfonium (TPS) triflate salt in the emitting layer. On one hand, the anion displacement influences the energetics at the polymer/anode interface facilitating hole injection, whereas, on the other hand, the triphenylsulfonium cations act as electron transporting sites. The OLEDs exhibit significantly reduced turn-on voltage to half their initial value and increased luminance at low operating voltage. Moreover, the large energetic mismatch of the polymer and the triphenylsulfonium salt as well as the polarity induced by the ions result in simultaneous dual emission originating from the polymer exciton and from an electroplex, which is proposed to be formed at the triphenylsulfonium salt/polymer interfaces in the bulk. These results show that triphenylsulfonium salts represent an attractive class of materials that can be blended with conjugated polymers and can modify their electrical and/or emissive characteristics.</p