Improved field-effect transistor performance of a benzotrithiophene polymer through ketal cleavage in the solid state.

Nielsen CB, Sohn E-H, Cho D-J, Schroeder BC, Smith J, Lee M, Anthopoulos TD, Song K, McCulloch I

A benzotrithiophene polymer with a new thermally cleavable ketal substituent is reported. It is shown how this functional group can be used to facilitate solvent processing and, subsequently, how it can be removed by a thermal annealing process to generate a structurally ordered and crystalline thin film with significantly improved field-effect transistor properties.