The Semiconductor/Conductor Interface Piezoresistive Effect in an Organic Transistor for Highly Sensitive Pressure Sensors

Abstract The piezoresistive pressure sensor, a kind of widely investigated artificial device to transfer force stimuli to electrical signals, generally consists of one or more kinds of conducting materials. Here, a highly sensitive pressure sensor based on the semiconductor/conductor interface piezoresistive effect is successfully demonstrated by using organic transistor geometry. Because of the efficient combination of the piezoresistive effect and field‐effect modulation in a single sensor, this pressure sensor shows excellent performance, such as high sensitivity (514 kPa−1), low limit of detection, short response and recovery time, and robust stability. More importantly, the unique gate modulation effect in the transistor endows the sensor with an unparalleled ability—tunable sensitivity via bias conditions in a single sensor, which is of great significance for applications in complex pressure environments. The novel working principle and high performance represent significant progress in the field of pressure sensors.