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Title: Long-lived charge carrier generation in ordered films of a covalent perylenediimide–diketopyrrolopyrrole–perylenediimide molecule

Journal Article · · Chemical Science
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1039/C4SC02551B· OSTI ID:1164941

The photophysics of a covalently linked perylenediimide–diketopyrrolopyrrole–perylenediimide acceptor–donor–acceptor molecule (PDI–DPP–PDI, 1) were investigated and found to be markedly different in solution versus in unannealed and solvent annealed films. Photoexcitation of 1 in toluene results in quantitative charge separation in τ = 3.1 ± 0.2 ps, with charge recombination in τ = 340 ± 10 ps, while in unannealed/disordered films of 1, charge separation occurs in τ < 250 fs, while charge recombination displays a multiexponential decay in ~6 ns. The absence of long-lived, charge separation in the disordered film suggests that few free charge carriers are generated. In contrast, upon CH₂Cl₂ vapor annealing films of 1, grazing-incidence X-ray scattering shows that the molecules form a more ordered structure. Photoexcitation of the ordered films results in initial formation of a spin-correlated radical ion pair (electron–hole pair) as indicated by magnetic field effects on the formation of free charge carriers which live for ~4 μs. This result has significant implications for the design of organic solar cells based on covalent donor–acceptor systems and shows that long-lived, charge-separated states can be achieved by controlling intramolecular charge separation dynamics in well-ordered systems.

Research Organization:
Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Advanced Photon Source (APS)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-06CH11357; FG02-99ER14999
OSTI ID:
1164941
Journal Information:
Chemical Science, Vol. 6, Issue 1; ISSN 2041-6520
Publisher:
Royal Society of ChemistryCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
ENGLISH
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 56 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

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Cited By (9)

Organic 2D Optoelectronic Crystals: Charge Transport, Emerging Functions, and Their Design Perspective journal April 2018
Charge-Transfer Character in a Covalent Diketopyrrolopyrrole Dimer: Implications for Singlet Fission journal October 2017
Diketopyrrolopyrrole assembly into J -aggregates : Diketopyrrolopyrrole Assembly into journal March 2016
α-Benzyl-β-Alanine Containing Naphthalenediimide Promotes Photoresponsive Radical Anion journal September 2018
G-quadruplex organic frameworks journal December 2016
Stable radical anions generated from a porous perylenediimide metal-organic framework for boosting near-infrared photothermal conversion journal February 2019
Control of the electrochemical and photophysical properties of N-substituted benzo[ghi]perylene derivatives journal January 2017
Syntheses and studies of electron/energy transfer of new dyads based on an unsymmetrical perylene diimide incorporating chelating 1,10-phenanthroline and its corresponding square-planar complexes with dichloroplatinum( ii ) and dichloropalladium( ii ) journal January 2018
Highly fluorescent free-standing films assembled from perylenediimide microcrystals for boosting aniline sensing journal January 2020

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