Why accumulation mode organic electrochemical transistors turn off much faster than they turn on

Abstract

Understanding the factors underpinning device switching times is crucial for the implementation of organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) in neuromorphic computing and real-time sensing applications. Existing models of device operation cannot explain the experimental observations that turn-off times are generally much faster than turn-on times in accumulation mode OECTs. Through operando optical microscopy, we image the local doping level of the transistor channel and show that device turn-on occurs in two stages, while turn-off occurs in one stage. We attribute the faster turn-off to a combination of engineering as well as physical and chemical factors including channel geometry, differences in doping and dedoping kinetics, and the physical phenomena of carrier density-dependent mobility. We show that ion transport is limiting the device operation speed in our model devices. Our study provides insights into the kinetics of OECTs and guidelines for engineering faster OECTs