The role of a highly optimized approach with superior transparent conductive oxide anode towards efficient organic solar cell

Abstract

The effort emphasizes the numerical analysis of different transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) perspectives, which include ITO, FTO, AZO, and IZO anode-based organic solar cells (OSCs) with the drift-diffusion approach. The prior selection of aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) as TCO is feasible for more extended transparency and antireflection due to a tailored absorption wavelength of <380 nm and the factors of higher mechanical flexibility, low-cost processing, and realistic performance at lower temperatures. To confirm the stability and reproducibility of the design OSC, the contribution of each interfacial layer thickness, i.e., AZO as TCOs, P3HT: PC61BM as an organic absorbing layer (OAL), Spiro-OMeTAD (SOT) as a hole-transport layer (HTL), and ZnO as an electron-transport layer (ETL), is also investigated. Furthermore, functions of optimum trap-state densities (Nt) and charge carrier mobility (μn,p) in OAL have been performed to aid in increasing the diffusion length of excitons carriers (L(n,p)). These properties led to better photo generation and transport of charge carriers, decreasing the series resistance (RS), leading to lower bimolecular recombination, a long carrier lifetime (ζn,p), and consequently higher power conversion efficiency (PCE). The findings revealed that the proposed OSC structure achieves an excellent PCE of 10.28% for AZO as TCO with an 850 nm ultra-thick OAL under AM 1.5G light irradiation. Hence, a better fabrication process for efficient OSC could also be improved by the optimization of all these critical factors for future research.

Influence of highly optimized charge carrier mobility and diverse physical features toward efficient organic solar cells

“…Furthermore, the favorable alignment of the band structure of P 3 HT: PC 61 BM in the OSC results in higher FF, J SC , and V OC . Thicker OALs increase power generation by increasing charge carrier density (ρ), potentially resulting in slower charge extraction and an enhanced R n,p [5,25,36]. The latest analysis similarly develops a close relationship between the V OC standards, with both examples indicating 0.88 Volt and 0.57 Volt for previous reports [7,13, 16, and 20], respectively.…”

“…Even a minor change in OAL width can entirely affect the total output of the OSC device. The preferable width of the OAL in the structure under consideration is 250 nm, which appears in table 1 through validation by experimentation [5,11]. This level of detail width is essential in establishing optical distribution and exciton generation patterns, which have a significant effect on charge carrier movement for the mainstream of excellent OSC performances.…”

“…Here, in simulation approaches, eliminating the N t within OAL and width has an impact according to the association between the L , n p , and n p , t charge carriers as well [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25]. The following could be expressed from numerous perspectives, as described in the references [5,7,16].…”

“…However, the efficacy and lifespan of OSCs are still insufficient for economic viability [2,3]. Owing to the possibility of a discrepancy in the distribution of photogenerated charges in the organic absorbing layer (OAL), which can be impacted by different physical properties, ratios of charge-carrier mobility (β) [4], density of trap state (N t ) [5], and other factors [1,3] to improve the η of OSCs. A recent study emphasizes the potential for further advancement in OSC technology, especially through the blending of donor-acceptor (D-A) co-polymers with altered fullerene derivatives [5,6].…”

“…Owing to the possibility of a discrepancy in the distribution of photogenerated charges in the organic absorbing layer (OAL), which can be impacted by different physical properties, ratios of charge-carrier mobility (β) [4], density of trap state (N t ) [5], and other factors [1,3] to improve the η of OSCs. A recent study emphasizes the potential for further advancement in OSC technology, especially through the blending of donor-acceptor (D-A) co-polymers with altered fullerene derivatives [5,6]. This combination improves morphology, μ n , broadens the absorption spectrum, allows for varied energy levels, maintains stability, and provides cost-effective options.…”