The PERGAMON consortium set out to reduce waste in corrugated‑cardboard production by replacing conventional moisture‑sensing methods with real‑time, near‑infrared (NIR) detectors based on organic electronics. The project, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research under grant 16ME0012 and running from 1 January 2020 to 31 September 2023, brought together the Technical University of Dresden, Senorics GmbH, Packwell GmbH & Co. KG, BHS Corrugated Maschinen‑und Anlagenbau GmbH, and the Technical University Bergakademie Freiberg. Dresden led the research on new semiconductor materials and device physics, Senorics developed the sensor hardware and microcavity design, Packwell supplied the production line for field testing, BHS engineered a targeted humidification system, and Freiberg contributed process‑control expertise.
The scientific effort began with the synthesis of a series of novel organic semiconductors. After a thermal purification step (sublimation), seven of the initial ten compounds survived; their yields ranged from 16.3 % for PM4 to 87.0 % for PM2, with PM1, PM2, PM3, PM6, PM8, and PM9 achieving 86.8 %, 87.0 %, 73.5 %, 77.2 %, 36.9 %, and 78.7 % respectively. These high‑purity materials were then incorporated into photodiodes that used C₆₀ as an acceptor and various donor/acceptor blends. By optimizing the microcavity—adjusting the thickness of a semi‑transparent silver electrode and refining the deposition uniformity—and by minimizing parasitic absorption in the transport layers, the devices achieved a balance between electrical signal strength and spectral resolution.
A key breakthrough was the demonstration of photomultiplication in these organic photodetectors. In 2021 the team proved that absorbed photons could trigger a cascade of charge‑transfer states, yielding an internal quantum efficiency exceeding 100 %. When applied to low‑bandgap materials suitable for infrared absorption, the photomultiplication mechanism allowed the detection limit to be pushed roughly 200 nm further into the infrared while simultaneously amplifying the signal by a factor of three to five. This performance surpasses that of conventional indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs) detectors and is particularly valuable for monitoring moisture in high‑speed corrugated‑cardboard lines.
Building on these device advances, Senorics engineered a compact, dust‑ and water‑resistant spectrometer that could operate at the 450 m min⁻¹ speeds of industrial paper belts. The system incorporated an automatic white‑reference routine for long‑term stability and fast electronics to match the rapid belt motion. BHS supplied a precise humidification module, and the combined sensor array was installed at Packwell’s plant in Schwepnitz. Real‑time data from the spectrometer were streamed to a central server, where they were correlated with flatness measurements. The analysis revealed clear relationships between moisture levels and planlage, demonstrating that the new sensors could enable active control of the humidification process and thus reduce defect rates in corrugated cardboard.
In summary, the PERGAMON project delivered a suite of high‑yield organic semiconductor materials, photodetectors with photomultiplication‑based signal amplification, and a fully integrated, industrial‑grade NIR spectrometer. These innovations were validated under real production conditions, showing that the system can improve moisture control and flatness in corrugated‑cardboard manufacturing, thereby lowering waste and enhancing overall process efficiency.