The development of organic electronics has progressed rapidly due to the demand for lower cost,
large scale fabrication of devices using inexpensive materials with flexible substrates. The field
has seen the discovery of many suitable organic substitutes for traditional electronic component
materials, in particular, by polymers and small molecules. One class of materials, metal oxides,
have yet to find organic alternatives capable of performing to standards required.
In this thesis, a non-toxic, room temperature method for functional oxide film formation from
small molecules frequently employed as active layers in devices is explored to fully determine
the mechanism by which the metal oxide is formed. Comparison of precursors, ZnPc (zinc
phthalocyanine) and ZnTPP (zinc tetraphenylporphyrin), with contrasting morphology when
deposited as thin films demonstrates the importance of the oxygen-assisted mechanism and
its relation to grain boundaries. It is demonstrated that efficiency of oxide formation may be
improved by choice of a crystalline precursor.
Heterostructures of ZnPc and PTCDA (3,4,9,10-perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydride), an archetypal organic semiconductor, are used as a model to determine the effect of the UV process for
oxide production on underlying organic layers. We show that approximately half the precursor film reacts before the underlying layer is affected. The structures also reveal no effect of
molecular orientation on the rate of oxide formation and templated films of ZnPc on PTCDA
are correctly indexed for the first time. The use of PTCDA also confirms that inclusion of an
oxygen-containing molecule can be employed as a method to increase the rate of film degradation.
Finally, nanosphere lithography of ZnPc films is combined with the UV assisted process to form
regular arrays of hollow triangular nanostructures or pillars with the aim of creating structures
suitable for photonic use.