Ether chain functionalized fullerene derivatives as cathode interface materials for efficient organic solar cells

Liu, Jikang; Li, Junli; Tu, Guoli

doi:10.1007/s12200-018-0842-9

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…Similarly, Liu et al modified ZnO with an ether-chain-functionalized fullerene derivative (C 60 -2EPM). The ZnO/C 60 -2EPM interface helped with electron transfer, increased photocurrent and enhanced PCE [225].…”

Section: Electron Transport Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interfacial engineering for organic and perovskite solar cells using molecular materials

Soultati

Verykios

Armadorou

et al. 2020

J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys.

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Organic and perovskite solar cells have recently emerged as promising candidates for next-generation solar energy technologies due to their low-cost solution-based fabrication over large areas even on flexible substrates, while offering the possibility of on-chip integration and patterning for custom-designed applications. A key concern over these emerging technologies is their poor operational stability. In a typical device architecture, the organic or perovskite absorber is usually inserted between an electron and a hole transport (extraction) layer in order to match the energetic differences present at the heterointerfaces with the respective contacts. As these layers considerably influence the device performance and operational stability, they have witnessed intense research efforts in recent years resulting in the development of novel materials. Conductive or insulating polymers, non-polymer molecular materials and transition metal oxides are among the most studied classes of interfacial materials. In this review article, we focus on the application of molecular materials, but excluding polymers, either organic or inorganic, to engineer the interfaces in these devices due to their ease of synthesis and facile functionalization of their structure to meet the requirements for successful device modification. We also include ionic compounds of well-defined stoichiometry such as CuSCN, ionic liquids and compounds of molecular anions as the polyoxometalates. We provide a comprehensive account of various molecular interlayers for organic and perovskite solar cell devices. We highlight the origin of enhanced performance and device lifetime and provide a detailed outlook for a focused future development of these materials.

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Section: Electron Transport Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Interfacial engineering for organic and perovskite solar cells using molecular materials

Soultati

Verykios

Armadorou

et al. 2020

J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys.

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“…[ 19,20 ] Nowadays, PM6:Y6 or Y‐series is the most widely used combination in the OSCs as active layers, [ 21–23 ] which also suffer from the same problem. [ 24 ] Some strategies were utilized to address this issue, such as surface treatment with polar solvents, [ 25 ] Lewis acid or gas plasma, [ 26,27 ] introducing dopants, that is, aluminum (Al), [ 28 ] zirconium (Zr), [ 29 ] indium and lithium cations (Li + ), [ 30,31 ] into ZnO layers, surface defects passivation of ZnO via insertion of appropriate interlayers, that is, self‐assembled monolayers (SAMs), [ 32 ] functionalized fullerenes, [ 33 ] ionic liquid and high‐molar‐mass polymers, [ 34,35 ] which have been demonstrated effective to improve the stability and efficiency of OSCs. Amongst them, the insertion of interlayers could also reduce device leakage current, as they could improve charge extraction.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Improved Efficiency and Stability of Organic Solar Cells by Interface Modification Using Atomic Layer Deposition of Ultrathin Aluminum Oxide

Lan

Zhu

et al. 2023

Energy & Environ Materials

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The interfacial contacts between the electron transporting layers (ETLs) and the photoactive layers are crucial to device performance and stability for OSCs with inverted architecture. Herein, atomic layer deposition (ALD) fabricated ultrathin Al2O3 layers are applied to modify the ETLs/active blends (PM6:BTP‐BO‐4F) interfaces of OSCs, thus improving device performance. The ALD‐Al2O3 thin layers on ZnO significantly improved its surface morphology, which led to the decreased work function of ZnO and reduced recombination losses in devices. The simultaneous increase in open‐circuit voltage (), short‐circuit current density () and fill factor (FF) were achieved for the OSCs incorporated with ALD‐Al2O3 interlayers of a certain thickness, which produced a maximum PCE of 16.61%. Moreover, the ALD‐Al2O3 interlayers had significantly enhanced device stability by suppressing degradation of the photoactive layers induced by the photocatalytic activity of ZnO and passivating surface defects of ZnO that may play the role of active sites for the adsorption of oxygen and moisture.

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“…It has been reported that ZnO exhibits an important photocatalytic activity under UV illumination, , promoting hydroxyl and superoxide radicals generation on its surface, which induces chemical reactions between the ETL and the PAL, resulting in degradation or decomposition pathways for the NFAs. , In addition, the closeness between energy levels of ZnO and the PAL may lead to recombination at the PAL/ZnO interface, reducing the photocurrent. Many of these issues can be solved by the introduction of an interfacial layer between the electrode and the PAL, − and/or by ZnO surface modification, which also has been shown to have various beneficial effects, such as passivation of charge-trap states, controlling energy-level alignment, and facilitating charge extraction. , It has been disclosed that surface defects on the ZnO layer can be eliminated by doping or interface passivation, for example, employing multiblock copolymers or small organic molecules with functional groups like carboxyl, amino, and hydroxyl. − Doping organic dye molecules into the matrix of ZnO effectively reduces the trap states and improves the electron mobility through light-induced electron transfer. , Here, we propose the use of ruthenium(II) bipyridine complexes as dyes attached to ZnO surfaces with the aims of reducing deactivation through trap states and enhancing energy-level alignment.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Heteroleptic Ruthenium(II) Complexes with 2,2′-Bipyridines Having Carbonitriles as Anchoring Groups for ZnO Surfaces: Syntheses, Physicochemical Properties, and Applications in Organic Solar Cells

et al. 2021

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Heteroleptic ruthenium (II) complexes were used for sensitizing ZnO surfaces in organic solar cells (OSCs) as mediators with photoactive layers. The complexes [Ru(4,4′-X 2 -bpy)(Mebpy-CN) 2 ] 2+ (with X = −CH 3 , −OCH 3 and −N(CH 3 ) 2 ; bpy = 2,2′-bipyridine; Mebpy-CN = 4-methyl-2,2′-bipyridine-4′-carbonitrile) were synthesized and studied by analytical and spectroscopical techniques. Spectroscopic, photophysical, and electrochemical properties were tuned by changing the electron-donating ability of the -X substituents at the 4,4′-positions of the bpy ring and rationalized by quantum mechanical calculations. These complexes were attached through nitrile groups to ZnO as interfacial layer in an OSC device with a PBDB-T:ITIC photoactive layer. This modified inorganic electron transport layer generates enhancement in photoconversion of the solar cells, reaching up to a 23% increase with respect to the unsensitized OSCs. The introduction of these dyes suppresses some degradative reactions of the nonfullerene acceptor due to the photocatalytic activity of zinc oxide, which was maintained stable for about 11 months. Improving OSC efficiencies and stabilities can thus be achieved by a judicious combination of new inorganic and organic materials.

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Ether chain functionalized fullerene derivatives as cathode interface materials for efficient organic solar cells

Cited by 8 publications

References 39 publications

Interfacial engineering for organic and perovskite solar cells using molecular materials

Interfacial engineering for organic and perovskite solar cells using molecular materials

Improved Efficiency and Stability of Organic Solar Cells by Interface Modification Using Atomic Layer Deposition of Ultrathin Aluminum Oxide

Heteroleptic Ruthenium(II) Complexes with 2,2′-Bipyridines Having Carbonitriles as Anchoring Groups for ZnO Surfaces: Syntheses, Physicochemical Properties, and Applications in Organic Solar Cells

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