Curable polymeric materials and their use for fabricating electronic devices

1. A method of fabricating a field-effect transistor having a semiconductor layer comprising a semiconducting electronic material, a dielectric layer comprising an insulating electronic material, and source, drain, and gate electrodes each comprising a conducting electronic material, wherein the field-effect transistor comprises an organic material comprising a ring-opening metathesis polymerization (ROMP) polymer and wherein either the dielectric layer comprises the organic material as the insulating electronic material or the organic material is in contact with at least one of the semiconducting electronic material, the insulating electronic material, and the conducting electronic material, the method comprising:

depositing the semiconducting electronic material to form the semiconductor layer;

depositing the ROMP polymer in an organic solvent, wherein the ROMP polymer is a linear polymer characterized by unsaturated bonds in the backbone and is obtained via ring-opening metathesis polymerization from an optionally substituted norbornene monomer, an optionally substituted dicyclopentadiene monomer, or a heteroatom derivative thereof; and

annealing the ROMP polymer in an oxygen-containing atmosphere at a temperature between about 110° C. and about 350° C. to provide the organic material.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ROMP polymer is obtained via ring-opening metathesis polymerization from a monomer having the formula:

wherein:

X 1 and Y 1 independently are selected from the group consisting of CH 2 , CHR, CR 2 , C(O), SiH 2 , SiHR, SiR 2 , NH, NR, O, and S, provided that at least one of X 1 and Y 1 is selected from the group consisting of CHR, CR 2 , and C(O); and

R is selected from the group consisting of a halogen, —OR 3 , —C(O)OR 3 , —OC(O)R 3 , —NR 4 R 5 , —C(O)NR 4 R 5 , —OC(O)NR 4 R 5 , a C 1-10 alkyl group, a C 1-10 haloalkyl group, and an optionally substituted aryl or heteroaryl group, wherein R 3 is a C 1-10 alkyl group or a —Si(C 1-10 alkyl) 3 group, and R 4 and R 5 independently are H or a C 1-10 alkyl group.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the monomer is selected from the group consisting of:

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ROMP polymer is obtained via ring-opening metathesis polymerization from a monomer having the formula:

wherein:

Y is selected from the group consisting of CH 2 , CHR, CR 2 , and C(O); wherein R is selected from the group consisting of a halogen, —OR 3 , —C(O)OR 3 , —OC(O)R 3 , —NR 4 R 5 , —C(O)NR 4 R 5 , —OC(O)NR 4 R 5 , a C 1-10 alkyl group, a C 1-10 haloalkyl group, and an optionally substituted aryl or heteroaryl group, wherein R 3 is a C 1-10 alkyl group or a —Si(C 1-10 alkyl) 3 group, and R 4 and R 5 independently are H or a C 1-10 alkyl group; and

R 1 and R 2 independently are selected from the group consisting of H, a halogen, —OR 3 , —C(O)OR 3 , —OC(O)R 3 , —NR 4 R 5 , —C(O)NR 4 R 5 , —OC(O)NR 4 R 5 , a C 1-10 alkyl group, a C 1-10 haloalkyl group, and an optionally substituted aryl or heteroaryl group, wherein R 3 is a C 1-10 alkyl group or a —Si(C 1-10 alkyl) 3 group, and R 4 and R 5 independently are H or a C 1-10 alkyl group.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the monomer is selected from the group consisting of:

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ROMP polymer is obtained via ring-opening metathesis polymerization from an optionally substituted norbornene monomer.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ring-opening metathesis polymerization is selectively catalyzed by an organosilicon compound and a tungsten(VI) hexachloride or oxytetrachloride.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ring-opening metathesis polymerization is selectively catalyzed by ReCl 5 and a tin compound.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the semiconductor layer comprises a metal oxide semiconducting electronic material.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the metal oxide semiconducting electronic material comprises indium-gallium-zinc oxide.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the semiconductor layer comprises an organic semiconducting electronic material.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the organic solvent is an orthogonal solvent for the organic semiconducting electronic material.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein the second organic solvent comprises an aliphatic hydrocarbon solvent, an alcohol solvent, a ketone solvent, an ester solvent, an ether solvent, an amide solvent, or a mixture thereof.

14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the annealing step is performed in air between about 130° C. and about 180° C. for a period of time between about 2 minutes and 30 minutes.

15. The method of claim 1 , wherein the ROMP polymer is partially hydrogenated.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the ROMP polymer is partially hydrogenated such that no more than about 50% of the unsaturated bonds in the backbone of the linear polymer are hydrogenated.

17. The method of claim 1 , wherein the organic material comprises a crosslinked matrix of the linear polymer.

18. The method of claim 1 further comprising exposing the organic material to ultraviolet light at a wavelength between about 250 nm and about 500 nm.

19. The method of claim 1 , wherein the dielectric layer is coupled to the semiconductor layer on one side and the gate electrode on another side, and wherein the dielectric layer comprises the organic material comprising the ROMP polymer.

20. The method of claim 1 , wherein the dielectric layer is in the form of a multi-layer laminate, and wherein at least one layer of the multi-layer laminate comprises the organic material comprising the ROMP polymer and at least one layer comprising a linear dielectric polymer that is not a ROMP polymer.