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Crystallinity and Molecular Packing of Small Molecules in Bulk-Heterojunction Organic Solar Cells. APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/app12115683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/10/2022]
Abstract
Crystallinity has played a major role in organic solar cells (OSCs). In small molecule (SM) bulk-heterojunction (BHJ) OSCs, the crystallinity and crystalline packing of SM donors have been shown to have a dramatic impact on the formation of an optimum microstructure leading to high-power conversion efficiency (PCE). Herein we describe how crystallinity differs from polymers to SMs, and how the packing habits of SMs (particularly donors) in active layers of BHJ devices can be described as following two different main modes: a single crystal-like and a liquid crystal-like packing type. This notion is reviewed from a chronological perspective, emphasising milestone donor structures and studies focusing on the crystallinity in SM-BHJ OSCs. This review intends to demonstrate that a shift towards a liquid crystalline-like packing can be identified throughout the history of SM-BHJ, and that this shift can be associated with an increase in overall PCE.
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Zhou L, Ran G, Liu Y, Bo Z, Sun S, Zhang W. Thermal Annealing Effect on Non-Fused Ring Acceptor Based Bulk Heterojunction Investigated by Transient Absorption Spectroscopy. JOURNAL OF PHOTOCHEMISTRY AND PHOTOBIOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jpap.2022.100129] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
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Wang R, Lüer L, Langner S, Heumueller T, Forberich K, Zhang H, Hauch J, Li N, Brabec CJ. Understanding the Microstructure Formation of Polymer Films by Spontaneous Solution Spreading Coating with a High-Throughput Engineering Platform. CHEMSUSCHEM 2021; 14:3590-3598. [PMID: 34236142 PMCID: PMC8518985 DOI: 10.1002/cssc.202100927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Revised: 06/25/2021] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
An important step of the great achievement of organic solar cells in power conversion efficiency is the development of low-band gap polymer donors, PBDB-T derivatives, which present interesting aggregation effects dominating the device performance. The aggregation of polymers can be manipulated by a series of variables from a materials design and processing conditions perspective; however, optimization of film quality is a time- and energy-consuming work. Here, we introduce a robot-based high-throughput platform (HTP) that is offering automated film preparation and optical spectroscopy thin-film characterization in combination with an analysis algorithm. PM6 films are prepared by the so-called spontaneous film spreading (SFS) process, where a polymer solution is coated on a water surface. Automated acquisition of UV/Vis and photoluminescence (PL) spectra and automated extraction of morphological features is coupled to Gaussian Process Regression to exploit available experimental evidence for morphology optimization but also for hypothesis formulation and testing with respect to the underlying physical principles. The integrated spectral modeling workflow yields quantitative microstructure information by distinguishing amorphous from ordered phases and assesses the extension of amorphous versus the ordered domains. This research provides an easy to use methodology to analyze the exciton coherence length in conjugated semiconductors and will allow to optimize exciton splitting in thin film organic semiconductor layers as a function of processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rong Wang
- Institute of Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET)Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergMartensstrasse 791058ErlangenGermany
- Erlangen Graduate School in Advanced Optical Technologies (SAOT)Paul-Gordan-Straße 691052ErlangenGermany
| | - Larry Lüer
- Institute of Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET)Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergMartensstrasse 791058ErlangenGermany
| | - Stefan Langner
- Institute of Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET)Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergMartensstrasse 791058ErlangenGermany
- Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nürnberg for Renewable Energy (IEK-11)Immerwahrstrasse 291058ErlangenGermany
| | - Thomas Heumueller
- Institute of Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET)Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergMartensstrasse 791058ErlangenGermany
- Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nürnberg for Renewable Energy (IEK-11)Immerwahrstrasse 291058ErlangenGermany
| | - Karen Forberich
- Institute of Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET)Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergMartensstrasse 791058ErlangenGermany
- Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nürnberg for Renewable Energy (IEK-11)Immerwahrstrasse 291058ErlangenGermany
| | - Heyi Zhang
- Institute of Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET)Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergMartensstrasse 791058ErlangenGermany
- Erlangen Graduate School in Advanced Optical Technologies (SAOT)Paul-Gordan-Straße 691052ErlangenGermany
| | - Jens Hauch
- Institute of Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET)Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergMartensstrasse 791058ErlangenGermany
- Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nürnberg for Renewable Energy (IEK-11)Immerwahrstrasse 291058ErlangenGermany
| | - Ning Li
- Institute of Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET)Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergMartensstrasse 791058ErlangenGermany
- Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nürnberg for Renewable Energy (IEK-11)Immerwahrstrasse 291058ErlangenGermany
- National Engineering Research Center for Advanced Polymer Processing TechnologyZhengzhou University450002ZhengzhouP. R. China
| | - Christoph J. Brabec
- Institute of Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET)Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-NürnbergMartensstrasse 791058ErlangenGermany
- Helmholtz Institute Erlangen-Nürnberg for Renewable Energy (IEK-11)Immerwahrstrasse 291058ErlangenGermany
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Stenta C, Molina D, Viterisi A, Montero-Rama MP, Pla S, Cambarau W, Fernández-Lázaro F, Palomares E, Marsal LF, Sastre-Santos Á. Diphenylphenoxy-Thiophene-PDI Dimers as Acceptors for OPV Applications with Open Circuit Voltage Approaching 1 Volt. NANOMATERIALS 2018; 8:nano8040211. [PMID: 29601514 PMCID: PMC5923541 DOI: 10.3390/nano8040211] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2018] [Revised: 03/21/2018] [Accepted: 03/26/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Two new perylenediimides (PDIs) have been developed for use as electron acceptors in solution-processed bulk heterojunction solar cells. The compounds were designed to exhibit maximal solubility in organic solvents, and reduced aggregation in the solid state. In order to achieve this, diphenylphenoxy groups were used to functionalize a monomeric PDI core, and two PDI dimers were bridged with either one or two thiophene units. In photovoltaic devices prepared using PDI dimers and a monomer in conjunction with PTB7, it was found that the formation of crystalline domains in either the acceptor or donor was completely suppressed. Atomic force microscopy, X-ray diffraction, charge carrier mobility measurements and recombination kinetics studies all suggest that the lack of crystallinity in the active layer induces a significant drop in electron mobility. Significant surface recombination losses associated with a lack of segregation in the material were also identified as a significant loss mechanism. Finally, the monomeric PDI was found to have sub-optimum LUMO energy matching the cathode contact, thus limiting charge carrier extraction. Despite these setbacks, all PDIs produced high open circuit voltages, reaching almost 1 V in one particular case.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caterina Stenta
- Departament d'Enginyeria Electrònica, Elèctrica i Automàtica, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Avda. Països Catalans 26, 43007 Tarragona, Spain.
| | - Desiré Molina
- Área de Química Orgánica, Instituto de Bioingeniería, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Avda. de la Universidad, s/n, 03203 Elche, Spain.
| | - Aurélien Viterisi
- Departament d'Enginyeria Electrònica, Elèctrica i Automàtica, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Avda. Països Catalans 26, 43007 Tarragona, Spain.
| | - María Pilar Montero-Rama
- Departament d'Enginyeria Electrònica, Elèctrica i Automàtica, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Avda. Països Catalans 26, 43007 Tarragona, Spain.
| | - Sara Pla
- Área de Química Orgánica, Instituto de Bioingeniería, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Avda. de la Universidad, s/n, 03203 Elche, Spain.
| | - Werther Cambarau
- Institut Català d'Investigació Química, Avda. Països Catalans 16, 43007 Tarragona, Spain.
| | - Fernando Fernández-Lázaro
- Área de Química Orgánica, Instituto de Bioingeniería, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Avda. de la Universidad, s/n, 03203 Elche, Spain.
| | - Emilio Palomares
- Institut Català d'Investigació Química, Avda. Països Catalans 16, 43007 Tarragona, Spain.
| | - Lluis F Marsal
- Departament d'Enginyeria Electrònica, Elèctrica i Automàtica, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Avda. Països Catalans 26, 43007 Tarragona, Spain.
| | - Ángela Sastre-Santos
- Área de Química Orgánica, Instituto de Bioingeniería, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Avda. de la Universidad, s/n, 03203 Elche, Spain.
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Sánchez JG, Balderrama VS, Garduño SI, Osorio E, Viterisi A, Estrada M, Ferré-Borrull J, Pallarès J, Marsal LF. Impact of inkjet printed ZnO electron transport layer on the characteristics of polymer solar cells. RSC Adv 2018; 8:13094-13102. [PMID: 35542512 PMCID: PMC9079671 DOI: 10.1039/c8ra01481g] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2018] [Accepted: 03/28/2018] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
In this paper, we demonstrate that zinc oxide (ZnO) layers deposited by inkjet printing (IJP) can be successfully applied to the low-temperature fabrication of efficient inverted polymer solar cells (i-PSCs). The effects of ZnO layers deposited by IJP as electron transport layer (ETL) on the performance of i-PSCs based on PTB7-Th:PC70BM active layers are investigated. The morphology of the ZnO-IJP layers was analysed by AFM, and compared to that of ZnO layers deposited by different techniques. The study shows that the morphology of the ZnO underlayer has a dramatic effect on the band structure and non-geminate recombination kinetics of the active layer deposited on top of it. Charge carrier and transient photovoltage measurements show that non-geminate recombination is governed by deep trap states in devices made from ZnO-IJP while trapping is less significant for other types of ZnO. The power conversion efficiency of the devices made from ZnO-IJP is mostly limited by their slightly lower JSC, resulting from non-optimum photon conversion efficiency in the visible part of the solar spectrum. Despite these minor limitations their J–V characteristics compare very favourably with that of devices made from ZnO layer deposited using different techniques. In this paper, we demonstrate that zinc oxide (ZnO) layers deposited by inkjet printing (IJP) can be successfully applied to the low-temperature fabrication of efficient inverted polymer solar cells (i-PSCs).![]()
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Affiliation(s)
- José G. Sánchez
- Departament d'Enginyeria Electrònica Elèctrica i Automàtica
- Universitat Rovira i Virgili. Av. Països Catalans 26
- 43007 Tarragona
- Spain
| | - Víctor S. Balderrama
- Cátedra-CONACYT
- Center for Engineering and Industrial Development (CIDESI)
- Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems Department (MEMS)
- 76125 Santiago de Querétaro
- México
| | - Salvador I. Garduño
- Cátedra-CONACYT
- Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional (CINVESTAV-I.P.N)
- 07360 Ciudad de México
- México
| | - Edith Osorio
- Cátedra-CONACYT
- Universidad de Quintana Roo
- División de Ciencia e Ingeniería
- Chetumal
- México
| | - Aurelien Viterisi
- Departament d'Enginyeria Electrònica Elèctrica i Automàtica
- Universitat Rovira i Virgili. Av. Països Catalans 26
- 43007 Tarragona
- Spain
| | - Magali Estrada
- Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados del Instituto Politécnico Nacional (CINVESTAV-I.P.N)
- 07360 Ciudad de México
- México
| | - Josep Ferré-Borrull
- Departament d'Enginyeria Electrònica Elèctrica i Automàtica
- Universitat Rovira i Virgili. Av. Països Catalans 26
- 43007 Tarragona
- Spain
| | - Josep Pallarès
- Departament d'Enginyeria Electrònica Elèctrica i Automàtica
- Universitat Rovira i Virgili. Av. Països Catalans 26
- 43007 Tarragona
- Spain
| | - Lluis F. Marsal
- Departament d'Enginyeria Electrònica Elèctrica i Automàtica
- Universitat Rovira i Virgili. Av. Països Catalans 26
- 43007 Tarragona
- Spain
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