Interfacial trap states in junctions of molecular semiconductors

Interfacial states that were established in contacts of molecular semiconductors with aqueous electrolytes or in contacts with another organic semiconductor as a solid film were analyzed by photoelectrochemical experiments and by photoelectron spectroscopy. A crucial role of such states was indicated in the interfacial charge transfer and recombination kinetics of light-induced charge carriers and also in the energetic alignment in the solid contacts. Unsubstituted zinc-phthalocyanine (PcZn) served as model compound. The role of chemical interactions in the establishment of these interfacial states was investigated by use of different reaction partners, i.e., different redox couples in the electrolyte contacts and molecular semiconductors of different ionization potential in the solid contacts. Implications of these results for the use of organic semiconductor thin films in devices of molecular electronics and of dye molecules in dyesensitized solar cells were also discussed.