Ionic thermoelectric gating organic transistors
"We are the first in the world to present a logic circuit, in this case a transistor, that is controlled by a heat signal instead of an electrical signal," states Professor Xavier Crispin of the Laboratory of Organic Electronics, Linköping University.
The heat-driven transistor opens the possibility of many new applications such as detecting small temperature differences, and using functional medical dressings in which the healing process can be monitored.
It is also possible to produce circuits controlled by the heat present in infrared light, for use in heat cameras and other applications. The high sensitivity to heat, 100 times greater than traditional thermoelectric materials, means that a single connector from the heat-sensitive electrolyte, which acts as sensor, to the transistor circuit is sufficient. One sensor can be combined with one transistor to create a "smart pixel".
A matrix of smart pixels can then be used, for example, instead of the sensors that are currently used to detect infrared radiation in heat cameras. With more developments, the new technology can potentially enable a new heat camera in your mobile phone at a low cost, since the materials required are neither expensive, rare nor hazardous.
The heat-driven transistor builds on research that led to a supercapacitor being produced a year ago, charged by the sun's rays. In the capacitor, heat is converted to electricity, which can then be stored in the capacitor until it is needed.
The researchers at the Laboratory of Organic Electronics had searched among conducting polymers and produced a liquid electrolyte with a 100 times greater ability to convert a temperature gradient to electric voltage than the electrolytes previously used. The liquid electrolyte consists of ions and conducting polymer molecules. The positively charged ions are small and move rapidly, while the negatively charged polymer molecules are large and heavy. When one side is heated, the small ions move rapidly towards the cold side and a voltage difference arises.
"When we had shown that the capacitor worked, we started to look for other applications of the new electrolyte," says Xavier Crispin.
Dan Zhao, principal research engineer, and Simone Fabiano, senior lecturer, have shown, after many hours in the laboratory, that it is fully possible to build electronic circuits that are controlled by a heat signal.
Since 2014 the research has been financed by the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation as part of the "Tail of the sun" project.
The Laboratory of Organic Electronics
The Laboratory of Organic Electronics, Linköping University, is located on Campus Norrköping, and is the birthplace of the world's first organic transistor and the world's first chemical chip, together with several other organic electronic components. Professor Magnus Berggren is head of the laboratory.
Ionic thermoelectric gating organic transistors, Dan Zhao, Simone Fabiano, Magnus Berggren and Xavier Crispin, Linköping University, Campus Norrköping, Nature Communications 2017. DOI 10.1038/ncomms14214
Here heat is stored as electricity, Research News, Linköping University http://liu.
Professor Xavier Crispin Xavier.firstname.lastname@example.org +46 11 36 34 85
Xavier Crispin | EurekAlert!
In best circles: First integrated circuit from self-assembled polymer
19.02.2018 | Max-Planck-Institut für Polymerforschung
System draws power from daily temperature swings
16.02.2018 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology
For the first time, a team of researchers at the Max-Planck Institute (MPI) for Polymer Research in Mainz, Germany, has succeeded in making an integrated circuit (IC) from just a monolayer of a semiconducting polymer via a bottom-up, self-assembly approach.
In the self-assembly process, the semiconducting polymer arranges itself into an ordered monolayer in a transistor. The transistors are binary switches used...
Breakthrough provides a new concept of the design of molecular motors, sensors and electricity generators at nanoscale
Researchers from the Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry of the CAS (IOCB Prague), Institute of Physics of the CAS (IP CAS) and Palacký University...
For photographers and scientists, lenses are lifesavers. They reflect and refract light, making possible the imaging systems that drive discovery through the microscope and preserve history through cameras.
But today's glass-based lenses are bulky and resist miniaturization. Next-generation technologies, such as ultrathin cameras or tiny microscopes, require...
Scientists from the University of Zurich have succeeded for the first time in tracking individual stem cells and their neuronal progeny over months within the intact adult brain. This study sheds light on how new neurons are produced throughout life.
The generation of new nerve cells was once thought to taper off at the end of embryonic development. However, recent research has shown that the adult brain...
Theoretical physicists propose to use negative interference to control heat flow in quantum devices. Study published in Physical Review Letters
Quantum computer parts are sensitive and need to be cooled to very low temperatures. Their tiny size makes them particularly susceptible to a temperature...
15.02.2018 | Event News
13.02.2018 | Event News
12.02.2018 | Event News
19.02.2018 | Materials Sciences
19.02.2018 | Materials Sciences
19.02.2018 | Life Sciences