Electrical characterization of organic semiconductors by transient current methods

This paper presents a method for characterizing the transport properties of organic semiconductors by means of large-signal electrical transients. For validating the method, poly(phenylene-vinylene) (PPV) was chosen as a test material, thanks to its widely investigated properties. Large voltage steps are applied to Au/PPV/Au test structures and, from the resulting current transient, the carrier mobility is measured. Transient phenomena are shown to give insight on the physical properties of the material and on the technological characteristics of the device, while requiring a simpler test system in comparison to other methods, like impedance spectroscopy and time-of-flight measurements.