Influence of film thickness and air exposure on the transport gap of manganese phthalocyanine

The interface formation between manganese phthalocyanine (MnPc) and cobalt was investigated combining ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy and inverse photoelectron spectroscopy. The transport band gap of the MnPc increases with the film thickness up to a value of (1.2 ± 0.3) eV while the optical band gap as determined from spectroscopic ellipsometry amounts to 0.5 eV. The gap values are smaller compared to other phthalocyanines due to metallic Mn 3d states close to the Fermi level. The transport band gap was found to open upon air exposure as a result of the disappearance of the occupied 3d electronic states.