Photo-induced electron transfer from a conducting polymer to buckminsterfullerene: A molecular approach to high efficiency photovoltaic cells. Final report
For photovoltaic cells made with pure conjugated polymers, energy conversion efficiencies were typically 10{sup {minus}3}--10{sup {minus}2}%, too low to be used in practical applications. The recent discovery of photoinduced electron transfer in composites of conducting polymers (as donors) and buckminsterfullerene, C{sub 60}, and its derivatives (as acceptors) provided a molecular approach to high efficiency photovoltaic conversion. Since the time scale for photoinduced charge transfer is subpicosecond, more than 10{sup 3} times faster than the radiative or nonradiative decay of photo-excitations, the quantum efficiency for charge transfer and charge separation from donor to acceptor is close to unity. Thus, photoinduced charge transfer across a donor/acceptor (D/A) interface provides an effective method of overcome early time carrier recombination in organic systems and thus to enhance the optoelectronic response of these materials. Progress toward creating bulk D/A heterojunction materials is described by summarizing two publications which resulted from this research, namely: Plastic photovoltaic cells made with donor-acceptor composites -- Enhanced carrier collection efficiency via a network of internal heterojunctions; and Charge separation and photovoltaic conversion in polymer composites with internal donor/acceptor heterojunctions.
- Research Organization:
- Univ. of California, Santa Barbara, CA (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- USDOE Office of Energy Research, Washington, DC (United States)
- DOE Contract Number:
- FG03-93ER12138
- OSTI ID:
- 656624
- Report Number(s):
- DOE/ER/12138--T1; ON: DE98006360
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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