InSnZnO Thin-Film Transistors Coupled With Hydrophobic Polymer-Inorganic Hybrid Layer for Enhanced Pressure Sensing

In this work, we fabricated a multicomponent precursor solution mainly composed of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), zinc oxide, and MXene. The resulting solution was then applied to the thin-film transistors (TFTs) with InSnZnO (ITZO) channels via a simple spin-coating process, forming a hydrophobic polymer-inorganic hybrid layer (PIHL) tailored for pressure sensing applications. The PIHL serves as a piezoelectric-charge-gating layer, modulating the TFT channel current in response to the applied pressure. The PIHL-coupled ITZO TFT device exhibits good electrical properties, including a saturation mobility of 18.16 cm2/V $\cdot $ s, a subthreshold swing (SS) of 110 mV/dec, and an on/off current ratio of $2.43\times 107$ . As the external pressure increases, the threshold voltage of the device shifts toward a higher positive gate voltage. Additionally, the device demonstrates a rapid response to external pressure, with a response time of 125 ms and a sensitivity up to 3.53 $\mathrm{kPa}^{-{1}}$ . Consequently, this miniaturized TFT pressure sensor holds potential for applications in flexible touch screens, human-computer interaction, and electronic skin technologies.