Organic semiconductors are emerging as a capable thin film electronic technology for a wide range of applications in displays, flexible electronics, thermoelectrics, spintronics, sensing and bioelectronics. However, despite many years of focussed research key aspects of the charge and spin transport physics of conjugated molecular and polymeric semiconductors remain poorly understood. Charge transport in molecular semiconductors is being interpreted in terms of a transient localisation scenario, in which the molecular lattice dynamics leads to strong non-diagonal electron phonon coupling that couples charge motion to molecular motions. However, a much better microscopic understanding of which molecular modes are most strongly coupled to the charge motion is essential to derive molecular design guideline for higher mobility materials. As far as spin transport is concerned there is currently no convincing demonstration of long range spin transport in organic materials and a clearer understanding is needed of the molecular requirements that need to be met to enable long range spin diffusion in these relatively low mobility materials. In this talk I will give an overview over our current understanding of the physics underpinning charge and spin transport in these materials.

Biography

Prof. Henning Sirringhaus, FRS, is the Hitachi Professor of Electron Device Physics at the Cavendish Laboratory and works on the charge transport, photo- and device physics of polymer and molecular semiconductors. He is co-founder of the spin-off companies, Plastic Logic and Eight-19 Ltd, commercializing organic transistor and organic solar cell technology, respectively.