Development of n-type polymer semiconductors for organic field-effect transistors

We review herein the development of unipolar n-type polymer semiconductors in organic field-effect transistors, which would enable large-scale deployment of printed electronics in combination with a fast-growing area of p-type counterparts. After discussing general features of electron transport in organic semiconductors, various p-conjugated polymers that are capable of transporting electrons are selected and summarized to outline the design principles for enhancing electron mobility and stability in air. The n-type polymer semiconductors with high electron mobility and good stability in air share common features of low-lying frontier molecular orbital energy levels achieved by design. In this review, materials are listed in roughly chronological order of the appearance of the key building blocks, such as various arylene diimides, or structural characteristics, including nitrile and fluorinated groups, in order to present the progress in the area of n-type polymers.