Work

Efficient n‐Doping of Organic Semiconductors via a Broadly Applicable Nucleophilic‐Attack Mechanism

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: The development of efficient and broadly applicable n‐doping strategies for organic semiconductors (OSCs) is crucial for advancing the performance of various organic electronic devices. Here, a novel nucleophilic‐attack n‐doping mechanism is unveiled that achieves exceptionally high conductivity in doped OSC films and demonstrates broad applicability across OSCs. The remarkable efficacy of n‐Butyl lithium (n‐BuLi) is highlighted in n‐doping C 60 and PC 61 BM, achieving a conductivity of 1.27 S cm −1 and 2.57 S cm −1 , respectively, which are among the highest reported values for these materials. The investigation reveals that the n‐BuLi anion interacts with electron‐deficient units in OSCs, generating a carbanion that facilitates efficient electron transfer for n‐doping. This mechanism is further validated across diverse fullerenes, polymeric, and small molecule OSCs, and is extendable to other high‐performance dopants such as tert‐Butyllithium (tert‐BuLi) and sodium ethoxide (NaOEt). Device studies show that n‐BuLi‐doped C 60 enables substantially improved diode rectification, attributed to greater junction built‐in potential. These findings establish a unified chemical‐bonding‐based n‐doping paradigm, complementing existing electrophilic‐attack p‐doping concepts, and pave the way for achieving efficient doping of OSCs for advanced organic electronic applications.

Source: Advanced Science

DOI: 10.1002/advs.202520487