Scientists from Philips Research and the University of Groningen in the Netherlands say they have for the first time fabricated arrays of molecular diodes on standard substrates with high yields that could be a promising next step in plastic electronics.

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The molecular diodes are as thin as one molecule, 1.5nm, and suitable for integration into standard plastic electronics circuits, according to the researchers. Based on construction principles known as molecular self-organization, molecular electronics is a promising new approach for manufacturing electronics circuits in addition to conventional semiconductor processing, they claim.
Although still a relatively new field, molecular electronics can be regarded as the next evolutionary stage for plastic electronics. Molecular electronics holds the potential to fabricate elements for electronics circuits with a functionality that is embedded in just a single layer of molecules, according to the technology‘s proponents.
Instead of using lithography or printing techniques to etch or print nanoscale circuit features, molecular electronics can be engineered to use organic molecules that spontaneously form the correct structures via self-organization.