Polymer‐Based Resistive Memory Materials and Devices

Due to the advantages of good scalability, flexibility, low cost, ease of processing, 3D‐stacking capability, and large capacity for data storage, polymer‐based resistive memories have been a promising alternative or supplementary devices to conventional inorganic semiconductor‐based memory technology, and attracted significant scientific interest as a new and promising research field. In this review, we first introduced the general characteristics of the device structures and fabrication, memory effects, switching mechanisms, and effects of electrodes on memory properties associated with polymer‐based resistive memory devices. Subsequently, the research progress concerning the use of single polymers or polymer composites as active materials for resistive memory devices has been summarized and discussed. In particular, we consider a rational approach to their design and discuss how to realize the excellent memory devices and understand the memory mechanisms. Finally, the current challenges and several possible future research directions in this field have also been discussed.     

Palm‐Sized Ag+ Ion Emission Gun Operated at Room Temperature in Non‐Vacuum Atmosphere

Ion implantation is an effective method for changing surface properties and inducing various functionalities. However, a high vacuum is generally necessary for ion implantation, which limits the range of applications. Here, we describe a palm‐sized Ag⁺ ion emission gun produced using a solid electrolyte. AgI–Ag₂O–B₂O₃ glass, known as a super‐ion‐conducting glass, has a Ag⁺ ion conductivity higher than 5 × 10^?3 S cm^?1 at room temperature. In addition, the melted glass has suitable viscous flow, and a sharp glass‐fiber emitter with a pyramid‐like apex can be obtained. Ag⁺ ion emission is observed from the tip of the glass fiber at accelerating voltages corresponding to electric fields above 20 kV cm^?1, even at room temperature in a non‐vacuum atmosphere. Ag nanoparticles of size 50–350 nm are precipitated on a Si target substrate. Other glass components such as boron and iodine are not detected. Electrochemical quartz crystal microbalance (EQCM) measurements show that the mass of Ag nanoparticles estimated from the emission current using Faraday's law of electrolysis is in good agreement with that estimated from the QCM frequency shift.

     

Approaching Intra‐ and Interchain Charge Transport of Conjugated Polymers Facilely by Topochemical Polymerized Single Crystals

Charge transport of small molecules is measured well with scanning tunneling microscopy, conducting atomic force microscopy, break junction, nanopore, and covalently bridging gaps. However, the manipulation and measurement of polymer chains remain a long‐standing fundamental issue in conjugated polymers and full of challenge since conjugated polymers are naturally disordered materials. Here, a fundamental breakthrough in generating high‐quality conjugated‐polymer nanocrystals with extended conjugation and exceptionally high degrees of order using a surface‐supported topochemical polymerization method is demonstrated. In the crystal the conjugated‐polymer chains are extended along the long axis of the crystal with the side chains perpendicular to the long axis. Devices with conducting channels along the polymer chains show efficient charge transport, nearly two orders of magnitude greater than the interchain charge transport along the π–π stacking direction. This is the first example to clarify intra‐ and interchain charge transport based on an individual single crystal of conjugated polymers, and demonstrate the importance of intrachain charge transport in plastic electronics.     

Ion Exchange Gels Allow Organic Electrochemical Transistor Operation with Hydrophobic Polymers in Aqueous Solution

Conjugated-polymer-based organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs) are being studied for applications ranging from biochemical sensing to neural interfaces. While new polymers that interface digital electronics with the aqueous chemistry of life are being developed, the majority of high-performance organic transistor materials are poor at transporting biologically relevant ions. Here, the operating mode of an organic transistor is changed from that of an electrolyte-gated organic field-effect transistor (EGOFET) to that of an OECT by incorporating an ion exchange gel between the active layer and the aqueous electrolyte. This device works by taking up biologically relevant ions from solution and injecting more hydrophobic ions into the active layer. Using poly[2,5-bis(3-tetradecylthiophen-2-yl) thieno[3,2-b]thiophene] as the active layer and a blend of an ionic liquid, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide, and poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) as the ion exchange gel, four orders of magnitude improvement in device transconductance and a 100-fold increase in kinetics are demonstrated. The ability of the ion-exchange-gel OECT to record biological signals by measuring the action potentials of a Venus flytrap is demonstrated. These results show the possibility of using interface engineering to open up a wider palette of organic semiconductors as OECTs that can be gated by aqueous solutions.     

25th Anniversary Article: High‐Mobility Hole and Electron Transport Conjugated Polymers: How Structure Defines Function

The structural organization of three different families of semicrystalline π‐conjugated polymers is reported (poly(3‐hexylthiophene) (P3HT), poly[2,6‐(4,4‐bis‐alkyl‐4H‐cyclopenta‐[2,1‐b;3,4‐b0]‐dithiophene)‐alt‐4,7‐(2,1,3‐benzothiadiazole)](cyclopentadithiophene‐benzothiadiazole) (CDT‐BTZ) and poly(N,N"‐bis‐2‐octyldodecylnaphtalene‐1,4,5,8‐bis‐dicarboximide‐2,6‐diyl‐alt‐5,5–2,2‐bithiophene (P(NDI2OD‐T2))). These have triggered significant interest for their remarkable charge‐transport properties. By performing molecular mechanics/dynamics simulations with carefully re‐parameterized force fields, it is illustrated in particular how the supramolecular organization of these conjugated polymers is driven by an interplay between the length and nature of the conjugated monomer unit and the packing of their alkyl side chains, and to what extent it impacts the charge‐carrier mobility, as monitored by quantum‐chemical calculations of the intermolecular hopping transfer integrals. This Progress Report is concluded by providing generic guidelines for the design of materials with enhanced degrees of supramolecular organization.     

Nonaqueous Hybrid Lithium‐Ion and Sodium‐Ion Capacitors

Hybrid metal‐ion capacitors (MICs) (M stands for Li or Na) are designed to deliver high energy density, rapid energy delivery, and long lifespan. The devices are composed of a battery anode and a supercapacitor cathode, and thus become a tradeoff between batteries and supercapacitors. In the past two decades, tremendous efforts have been put into the search for suitable electrode materials to overcome the kinetic imbalance between the battery‐type anode and the capacitor‐type cathode. Recently, some transition‐metal compounds have been found to show pseudocapacitive characteristics in a nonaqueous electrolyte, which makes them interesting high‐rate candidates for hybrid MIC anodes. Here, the material design strategies in Li‐ion and Na‐ion capacitors are summarized, with a focus on pseudocapacitive oxide anodes (Nb₂O₅, MoO₃, etc.), which provide a new opportunity to obtain a higher power density of the hybrid devices. The application of Mxene as an anode material of MICs is also discussed. A perspective to the future research of MICs toward practical applications is proposed to close.     

High‐Performance Long‐Term‐Stable Dopant‐Free Perovskite Solar Cells and Additive‐Free Organic Solar Cells by Employing Newly Designed Multirole π‐Conjugated Polymers

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) and organic solar cells (OSCs) are promising renewable light‐harvesting technologies with high performance, but the utilization of hazardous dopants and high boiling additives is harmful to all forms of life and the environment. Herein, new multirole π‐conjugated polymers (P1–P3) are developed via a rational design approach through theoretical hindsight, further successfully subjecting them into dopant‐free PSCs as hole‐transporting materials and additive‐free OSCs as photoactive donors, respectively. Especially, P3‐based PSCs and OSCs not only show high power conversion efficiencies of 17.28% and 8.26%, but also display an excellent ambient stability up to 30 d (for PSCs only), owing to their inherent superior optoelectronic properties in their pristine form. Overall, the rational approach promises to support the development of environmentally and economically sustainable PSCs and OSCs.