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  • Focus Review
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Chemical sensing based on water-gated polythiophene thin-film transistors

Polymer Journal volume 53, pages 1315–1323 (2021)Cite this article

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Abstract

Compact chemical sensors are in high demand for on-site detection of chemical substances in aqueous media. Polymer thin-film transistors (PTFTs) are among the most promising candidates for such sensors owing to their advantages. Water-gated PTFTs (WG-PTFTs) fabricated by a simple procedure can be operated at an ultralow voltage (<1 V) that avoids undesirable electrochemical reactions. Hence, we have developed WG-PTFT-based sensors using a chemical stimulus-responsive polythiophene derivative (i.e., poly[3-(5-carboxypentyl)thiophene-2,5-diyl] (P3CPT)), for which the changes in the electric double layer capacitance (EDLC) by accumulation and desorption of charged species are a key sensing mechanism. In this Focus Review, we report two examples: (1) the detection of biogenic amines such as histamine through hydrogen bonding and electrostatic interactions between the carboxylate side chain of P3CPT and targets, and (2) the highly sensitive detection of the herbicide glyphosate (GlyP) by competitive coordination binding among P3CPT, Cu2+, and GlyP. More importantly, in comparison to fluorescent chemical sensors fabricated using the same materials, WG-PTFT-based sensors show a lower detection limit. This result can be explained by the synergism of “intra” and “inter” molecular wire effects that originate from the aggregation of P3CPT under a field effect. Therefore, we believe that the sensing strategy developed here based on WG-PTFTs can contribute to improving the quality of life in real-world scenarios.

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Acknowledgements

TM thanks JSPS KAKENHI (Grant Nos. JP21H01780, JP20K21204, and JP20H05207) and JST CREST (Grant No. JPMJCR2011). We thank AGC Inc. for supplying Cytop®.

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  1. Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan

    Tsuyoshi Minami, Wei Tang & Koichiro Asano

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  1. Tsuyoshi Minami
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TM conducted the project and wrote the manuscript. WT and KA participate in writing the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Tsuyoshi Minami.

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Minami, T., Tang, W. & Asano, K. Chemical sensing based on water-gated polythiophene thin-film transistors. Polym J 53, 1315–1323 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41428-021-00537-4

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