A Pressure-Sensitive and Piezoelectret-Gated Organic Thin-Film Transistor With Ultra-Low Power Consumption

Organic thin-film transistors and sensors are critical for flexible electronics to reach its potential of shaping human lives. However, current organic transistors are often restricted by high threshold voltage and power consumption, and integration with sensors adds to the space and design complexity. In this paper, we found that the pressure-induced electric field in piezoelectret modulates the charge transport in organic semiconductors effectively. The piezoelectret-gated transistor eliminates the gate electrode and adds pressure-sensing capability, and the low operation voltage enables a device with nanowatt power consumption. By switching the dipole orientation in the piezoelectret, the device can work either in enhancement mode or depletion mode, simplifying the circuit design to achieve direct logic operations on pressure. The piezoelectret gating mechanism and the pressure-sensitive, low-power, and flexible transistor will advance the development of human-machine interfaces and wearable technologies.