New carbon-based superconductors are synthesized by intercalating metal atoms into the solid-phase hydrocarbons picene and coronene. The highest reported superconducting transition temperature, T_c, of a hydrocarbon superconductor is 18 K for K₃picene. The physics and chemistry of the hydrocarbon superconductors are extensively described for A_xpicene (A: alkali and alkali earth-metal atoms) for x = 0–5. The theoretical picture of their electronic structure is also reviewed. Future prospects for hydrocarbon superconductors are discussed from the viewpoint of combining electronics with condensed-matter physics: modification of the physical properties of hydrocarbon solids is explored by building them into a field-effect transistor. The features of other carbon-based superconductors are compared to clarify the nature of hydrocarbon superconductors.

Transport characteristics and trap states are investigated in picene thin film field-effect transistor under O2 atmosphere on the basis of multiple shallow trap and release (MTR) model. The channel transport is dominated by MTR below 300 K. It has been clarified on the basis of MTR model that the O2-exposure induces a drastic reduction in shallow trap density to increase both the field-effect mobility μ and on-off ratio. We also found that the O2-exposure never caused an increase in hole carrier density. Actually, a very high μ value of 3.2 cm2 V−1 s−1 is realized under 500 Torr of O2.

Field-effect transistors (FETs) were fabricated with a thin film of 3,10-ditetradecylpicene, picene-(C14H29)2, formed using either a thermal deposition or a deposition from solution (solution process). All FETs showed p-channel normally-off characteristics. The field-effect mobility, μ, in a picene-(C14H29)2 thin-film FET with PbZr0.52Ti0.48O3 (PZT) gate dielectric reached ~21 cm2 V(-1) s(-1), which is the highest μ value recorded for organic thin-film FETs; the average μ value (<μ>) evaluated from twelve FET devices was 14(4) cm2 V(-1) s(-1). The <μ> values for picene-(C14H29)2 thin-film FETs with other gate dielectrics such as SiO2, Ta2O5, ZrO2 and HfO2 were greater than 5 cm2 V(-1) s(-1), and the lowest absolute threshold voltage, |Vth|, (5.2 V) was recorded with a PZT gate dielectric; the average |Vth| for PZT gate dielectric is 7(1) V. The solution-processed picene-(C14H29)2 FET was also fabricated with an SiO2 gate dielectric, yielding μ=3.4×10(-2) cm2 V(-1) s(-1). These results verify the effectiveness of picene-(C14H29)2 for electronics applications.

Many chemists have attempted syntheses of extended π-electron network molecules because of the widespread interest in the chemistry, physics and materials science of such molecules and their potential applications. In particular, extended phenacene molecules, consisting of coplanar fused benzene rings in a repeating W-shaped pattern have attracted much attention because field-effect transistors (FETs) using phenacene molecules show promisingly high performance. Until now, the most extended phenacene molecule available for transistors was [8]phenacene, with eight benzene rings, which showed very high FET performance. Here, we report the synthesis of a more extended phenacene molecule, [9]phenacene, with nine benzene rings. Our synthesis produced enough [9]phenacene to allow the characterization of its crystal and electronic structures, as well as the fabrication of FETs using thin-film and single-crystal [9]phenacene. The latter showed a field-effect mobility as high as 18 cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹, which is the highest mobility realized so far in organic single-crystal FETs.