Fine‐Tuning the Energy Levels of a Nonfullerene Small‐Molecule Acceptor to Achieve a High Short‐Circuit Current and a Power Conversion Efficiency over 12% in Organic Solar Cells
Abstract
Abstract Organic solar cell optimization requires careful balancing of current–voltage output of the materials system. Here, such optimization using ultrafast spectroscopy as a tool to optimize the material bandgap without altering ultrafast photophysics is reported. A new acceptor–donor–acceptor (A–D–A)‐type small‐molecule acceptor NCBDT is designed by modification of the D and A units of NFBDT. Compared to NFBDT, NCBDT exhibits upshifted highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) energy level mainly due to the additional octyl on the D unit and downshifted lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy level due to the fluorination of A units. NCBDT has a low optical bandgap of 1.45 eV which extends the absorption range toward near‐IR region, down to ≈860 nm. However, the 60 meV lowered LUMO level of NCBDT hardly changes the V oc level, and the elevation of the NCBDT HOMO does not have a substantial influence on the photophysics of the materials. Thus, for both NCBDT‐ and NFBDT‐based systems, an unusually slow (≈400 ps) but ultimately efficient charge generation mediated by interfacial charge‐pair states is observed, followed by effective charge extraction. As a result, the PBDB‐T:NCBDT devices demonstrate an impressive power conversion efficiency over 12%—among the best for solution‐processed organic solar cells.
- Authors:
-
[5];
[1]
- State Key Laboratory and Institute of Elemento‐Organic Chemistry The Centre of Nanoscale Science and Technology and Key Laboratory of Functional Polymer Materials College of Chemistry Nankai University Tianjin 300071 China
- Department of Chemistry Imperial College London London SW7 2AZ UK, Cavendish Laboratory University of Cambridge J J Thomson Avenue Cambridge CB3 0HE UK
- Department of Physics and Astronomy Shanghai Jiaotong University Shanghai 200240 China
- Cavendish Laboratory University of Cambridge J J Thomson Avenue Cambridge CB3 0HE UK
- Department of Chemistry Imperial College London London SW7 2AZ UK
- Publication Date:
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1411258
- Grant/Contract Number:
- DE‐SC0001087
- Resource Type:
- Publisher's Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Advanced Materials
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Name: Advanced Materials Journal Volume: 30 Journal Issue: 3; Journal ID: ISSN 0935-9648
- Publisher:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
- Country of Publication:
- Germany
- Language:
- English
Citation Formats
Kan, Bin, Zhang, Jiangbin, Liu, Feng, Wan, Xiangjian, Li, Chenxi, Ke, Xin, Wang, Yunchuang, Feng, Huanran, Zhang, Yamin, Long, Guankui, Friend, Richard H., Bakulin, Artem A., and Chen, Yongsheng. Fine‐Tuning the Energy Levels of a Nonfullerene Small‐Molecule Acceptor to Achieve a High Short‐Circuit Current and a Power Conversion Efficiency over 12% in Organic Solar Cells. Germany: N. p., 2017.
Web. doi:10.1002/adma.201704904.
Kan, Bin, Zhang, Jiangbin, Liu, Feng, Wan, Xiangjian, Li, Chenxi, Ke, Xin, Wang, Yunchuang, Feng, Huanran, Zhang, Yamin, Long, Guankui, Friend, Richard H., Bakulin, Artem A., & Chen, Yongsheng. Fine‐Tuning the Energy Levels of a Nonfullerene Small‐Molecule Acceptor to Achieve a High Short‐Circuit Current and a Power Conversion Efficiency over 12% in Organic Solar Cells. Germany. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.201704904
Kan, Bin, Zhang, Jiangbin, Liu, Feng, Wan, Xiangjian, Li, Chenxi, Ke, Xin, Wang, Yunchuang, Feng, Huanran, Zhang, Yamin, Long, Guankui, Friend, Richard H., Bakulin, Artem A., and Chen, Yongsheng. Mon .
"Fine‐Tuning the Energy Levels of a Nonfullerene Small‐Molecule Acceptor to Achieve a High Short‐Circuit Current and a Power Conversion Efficiency over 12% in Organic Solar Cells". Germany. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.201704904.
@article{osti_1411258,
title = {Fine‐Tuning the Energy Levels of a Nonfullerene Small‐Molecule Acceptor to Achieve a High Short‐Circuit Current and a Power Conversion Efficiency over 12% in Organic Solar Cells},
author = {Kan, Bin and Zhang, Jiangbin and Liu, Feng and Wan, Xiangjian and Li, Chenxi and Ke, Xin and Wang, Yunchuang and Feng, Huanran and Zhang, Yamin and Long, Guankui and Friend, Richard H. and Bakulin, Artem A. and Chen, Yongsheng},
abstractNote = {Abstract Organic solar cell optimization requires careful balancing of current–voltage output of the materials system. Here, such optimization using ultrafast spectroscopy as a tool to optimize the material bandgap without altering ultrafast photophysics is reported. A new acceptor–donor–acceptor (A–D–A)‐type small‐molecule acceptor NCBDT is designed by modification of the D and A units of NFBDT. Compared to NFBDT, NCBDT exhibits upshifted highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) energy level mainly due to the additional octyl on the D unit and downshifted lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy level due to the fluorination of A units. NCBDT has a low optical bandgap of 1.45 eV which extends the absorption range toward near‐IR region, down to ≈860 nm. However, the 60 meV lowered LUMO level of NCBDT hardly changes the V oc level, and the elevation of the NCBDT HOMO does not have a substantial influence on the photophysics of the materials. Thus, for both NCBDT‐ and NFBDT‐based systems, an unusually slow (≈400 ps) but ultimately efficient charge generation mediated by interfacial charge‐pair states is observed, followed by effective charge extraction. As a result, the PBDB‐T:NCBDT devices demonstrate an impressive power conversion efficiency over 12%—among the best for solution‐processed organic solar cells.},
doi = {10.1002/adma.201704904},
journal = {Advanced Materials},
number = 3,
volume = 30,
place = {Germany},
year = {Mon Dec 04 00:00:00 EST 2017},
month = {Mon Dec 04 00:00:00 EST 2017}
}
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