Overview of the Metallization Approaches for Carbyne-Based Devices

Abstract

Metallization for contacts in organic electronic nanodevices is of great importance for their performance. A lot of effects can appear at the contact/organic interface and modify the contact parameters, such as contact resistance, adhesive strength, and bonding ability. For novel materials, it is important to study the interactions with metal atoms to develop a suitable technology for contacts, fulfilling to the greatest extent the above-mentioned parameters. A novel material is carbyne, which is still under intensive research because of its great potential in electronics, especially for sensing applications. However, the most appropriate metallization strategy for carbyne-based devices is still unknown, so the interactions between carbyne and metal films should be studied to more precisely direct the development of the metallization technology, and to form contacts that are not limiting factors for device performance.

Keywords: carbon chain; carbyne; electrical contact; metal interface; metallization.

Figure 1

Metal–organic interface and energy level alignments: transport mechanism of the charge carriers by (left) thermionic emission and (right) tunneling [9]. Reprinted from Materials Today, Vol 18, Chuan Liu et al., Contact engineering in organic field-effect transistors, Pages 79–96, Copyright (2015), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 2

Carbon allotropes [13].

Figure 3

(a) Structure of the NO₂ sensor based on a carbyne sensing layer with Au electrodes, and (b) volt–ampere characteristics under different irradiance levels [16]. Reprinted from SENSOR ACTUAT B-CHEM, Vol 316, Fei Yang et al., Visible-light-driven room-temperature gas sensor based on carbyne nanocrystals, Copyright (2020), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 4

Resistance and surface roughness of the carbyne samples at different temperatures (atomic force microscopy shows the surface before (left) and after (right) annealing at 200 °C [17]. © [2023] IEEE. Reprinted, with permission, from [R. Tomov and M. Aleksandrova, “Exploring Gold Contacts on Novel Carbyne-enriched Material,” 2023 46th International Spring Seminar on Electronics Technology (ISSE), Timisoara, Romania, pp. 1–4].

Figure 5

TEM and ESR of carbyne capped with Au nanoparticles [18]. Reprinted from Carbon, Vol 167, Tongming Chen et al. A fluorescent and colorimetric probe of carbyne nanocrystals coated Au nanoparticles for selective and sensitive detection of ferrous ions, Pages 196–201, Copyright (2020), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 6

FTIR spectra of Au–pseudocarbynes [19]. Reprinted from Carbon, Vol 205, Hyunsub Kim et al., Formation of Au-pseudocarbynes by self-assembly of carbon chains and gold clusters, Pages 546–551, Copyright (2023), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 7

The highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) of the nitrogen-capped carbyne sandwiched between Li electrodes [22]. Reprinted from Carbon, Vol 51, Z.H. Zhang et al., Electronic transport of nitrogen-capped monoatomic carbon wires between lithium electrodes, Pages 313–321, Copyright (2013), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 8

Current–voltage characteristics (a) and zero-bias transmission spectra (b) of the metal–nitrogen–carbyne–nitrogen–metal sandwich structures. M6 and M5 represent carbon chains consisting of 6 and 5 carbon atoms, respectively [22]. Reprinted from Carbon, Vol 51, Z.H. Zhang et al., Electronic transport of nitrogen-capped monoatomic carbon wires between lithium electrodes, Pages 313–321, Copyright (2013), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 9

Adsorption energies for cumulenes (c) and polyynes (p) for different numbers of carbon atoms (n) and different surfaces [23]. Reprinted from Carbon, Vol 50, L. Nykänen et al., Computational study of linear carbon chains on gold and silver surfaces, Pages 2752–2763, Copyright (2012), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 10

Adsorption places: (A) (fcc on 111), (B) (top site on 211), (C) (bridge site on 211), and (D) (hcp on 211). Colors are: carbon—grey, hydrogen—white, metal—orange [23]. Reprinted from Carbon, Vol 50, L. Nykänen et al., Computational study of linear carbon chains on gold and silver surfaces, Pages 2752–2763, Copyright (2012), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 11

Raman spectra for different storage times of Ag-terminated carbon chains [27]. Reprinted from Carbon, Vol 179, Liang Fang et al., Purification of polyynes via carbides, Pages 28–32, Copyright (2021), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 12

SEM of (a) FeCo₂O₄, (b) carbyne, (c) FeCo₂O₄@Carbyne nanohybrid on Ni foam and (d) EDX of FeCo₂O₄@Carbyne [28]. Reprinted from J Energy Storage, Vol 56, Preethi Dhandapani et al., In-situ grown of FeCo₂O₄@2D-Carbyne coated nickel foam—A newer nanohybrid electrode for high performance asymmetric supercapacitors, Copyright (2022), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 13

Schematic representation of the simulated structure [31]. Reprinted from MSEB, Vol 262, D.F.S. Ferreira et al., Electronic transport in 1D system with coupling atomic-size nickel electrodes and carbon wires, Copyright (2020), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 14

Bond lengths for structures with different numbers of carbon atoms, in angstroms [31]. Reprinted from MSEB, Vol 262, D.F.S. Ferreira et al., Electronic transport in 1D system with coupling atomic-size nickel electrodes and carbon wires, Copyright (2020), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 15

Current–voltage characteristics of Ni–carbyne–Ni structures containing different numbers of carbon atoms [31]. Reprinted from MSEB, Vol 262, D.F.S. Ferreira et al., Electronic transport in 1D system with coupling atomic-size nickel electrodes and carbon wires, Copyright (2020), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 16

(a) Vacuum electron emission (OSEE) spectra, and (b) calculated potential diagrams [35]. Reprinted from Carbon, Vol 152, E.A. Buntov et al., Effect of thickness and substrate type on the structure and low vacuum photoemission of carbyne-containing films, Pages 388–395, Copyright (2019), with permission from Elsevier.

Figure 17

Interaction between carbyne and Pt: (a) SEM of Pt-terminated carbyne on graphene, (b) removed graphene background by Fourier filtering, (c–e) simulated straight carbyne, (f–h) simulated zigzag alkane [38]. Reprinted from Carbon, Vol 80, Emi Kano et al., Direct observation of Pt-terminating carbyne on graphene, Pages 382–386, Copyright (2014), with permission from Elsevier.