Devices made using thin-film semiconductors have attracted much interest recently owing to new application possibilities. Among materials systems suitable for thin-film electronics, organic semiconductors are of particular interest; their low cost, biocompatible carbon-based materials and deposition by simple techniques such as evaporation or printing enable organic semiconductor devices to be used for ubiquitous electronics, such as those used on or in the human body or on clothing and packages^1,2,3. The potential of organic electronics can be leveraged only if the performance of organic transistors is improved markedly. Here we present organic bipolar transistors with outstanding device performance: a previously undescribed vertical architecture and highly crystalline organic rubrene thin films yield devices with high differential amplification (more than 100) and superior high-frequency performance over conventional devices. These bipolar transistors also give insight into the minority carrier diffusion length—a key parameter in organic semiconductors. Our results open the door to new device concepts of high-performance organic electronics with ever faster switching speeds.

由于新的应用可能性，使用薄膜半导体制造的器件最近引起了极大的兴趣。在适用于薄膜电子学的材料系统中，有机半导体特别受关注。它们的低成本、生物相容性碳基材料和通过蒸发或印刷等简单技术进行的沉积使有机半导体器件能够用于无处不在的电子产品，例如用于人体或衣服和包装上的电子产品^1,2,3. 只有有机晶体管的性能得到显着提高，才能发挥有机电子的潜力。在这里，我们展示了具有出色器件性能的有机双极晶体管：先前未描述的垂直架构和高度结晶的有机红荧烯薄膜产生的器件具有高差分放大（超过 100）和优于传统器件的高频性能。这些双极晶体管还可以深入了解少数载流子扩散长度——有机半导体的一个关键参数。我们的研究结果为具有更快开关速度的高性能有机电子器件的新概念打开了大门。