Plasma Polymerization Enabled Polymer/Metal–Oxide Hybrid Semiconductors for Wearable Electronics

A facile fabrication of polymer/metal–oxide hybrid semiconductors is introduced to overcome the intrinsically brittle nature of inorganic metal–oxide semiconductors. The fabrication of the hybrid semiconductors was enabled by plasma polymerization of polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) via radio frequency magnetron sputtering process which is highly compatible with metal–oxide semiconductor manufacturing facilities. Indium–gallium–zinc oxide (IGZO) and PTFE are cosputtered to fabricate PTFE-incorporated IGZO thin-film transistors (IGZO:PTFE TFTs) and they exhibit a field-effect mobility of 10.27 cm2 V–1 s–1, a subthreshold swing of 0.38 V dec–1, and an on/off ratio of 1.08 × 108. When compared with conventional IGZO TFTs, the IGZO:PTFE TFTs show improved stability results against various electrical, illumination, thermal, and moisture stresses. Furthermore, the IGZO:PTFE TFTs show stable electrical characteristics with a threshold voltage (Vth) shift of 0.89 V after 10 000 tensile bending cycles at a radius of 5 mm.