Emerging nonfullerene acceptors (NFAs) with crystalline domains enable high-performance bulk heterojunction (BHJ) solar cells. Thermal annealing is known to enhance the BHJ photoactive layer morphology and performance. However, the microscopic mechanism of annealing-induced performance enhancement is poorly understood in emerging NFAs, especially regarding competing factors. Here, optimized thermal annealing of model system PBDB-TF:Y6 (Y6 = 2,2′-((2Z,2′Z)- ((12,13-bis(2ethylhexyl)-3,9-diundecyl-12,13-dihydro-[1,2,5]decreases the open circuit voltage (V OC ) but increases the short circuit current (J SC ) and fill factor (FF) such that the resulting power conversion efficiency (PCE) increases from 14 to 15% in the ambient environment. Here we systematically investigate these thermal annealing effects through in-depth characterizations of carrier mobility, film morphology, charge photogeneration, and recombination using SCLC, GIXRD, AFM, XPS, NEXAFS, R-SoXS, TEM, STEM, fs/ns TA spectroscopy, 2DES, and impedance spectroscopy. Surprisingly, thermal annealing does not alter the film crystallinity, R-SoXS characteristic size scale, relative average phase purity, or TEM-imaged phase separation but rather facilitates Y6 migration to the BHJ film top surface, changes the PBDB-TF/Y6 vertical phase separation and intermixing, and reduces the bottom surface roughness. While these morphology changes increase bimolecular recombination (BR) and lower the free charge (FC) yield, they also increase the average electron and hole mobility by at least 2-fold. Importantly, the increased μ h dominates and underlies the increased FF and PCE. Single-crystal X-ray diffraction reveals that Y6 molecules cofacially pack via their end groups/cores, with the shortest π−π distance as close as 3.34 Å, clarifying out-of-plane π-face-on molecular orientation in the nanocrystalline BHJ domains. DFT analysis of Y6 crystals reveals hole/electron reorganization energies of as low as 160/150 meV, large intermolecular electronic coupling integrals of 12.1−37.9 meV rationalizing the 3D electron transport, and relatively high μ e of 10 −4 cm 2 V −1 s −1 . Taken together, this work clarifies the richness of thermal annealing effects in high-efficiency NFA solar cells and tasks for future materials design.

Two-photon excited near-infrared fluorescence materials have garnered considerable attention because of their superior optical penetration, higher spatial resolution, and lower optical scattering compared with other optical materials. Herein, a convenient and efficient supramolecular approach is used to synthesize a two-photon excited near-infrared emissive co-crystalline material. A naphthalenediimide-based triangular macrocycle and coronene form selectively two co-crystals. The triangle-shaped co-crystal emits deep-red fluorescence, while the quadrangle-shaped co-crystal displays deep-red and near-infrared emission centered on 668 nm, which represents a 162 nm red-shift compared with its precursors. Benefiting from intermolecular charge transfer interactions, the two co-crystals possess higher calculated two-photon absorption cross-sections than those of their individual constituents. Their two-photon absorption bands reach into the NIR-II region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The quadrangle-shaped co-crystal constitutes a unique material that exhibits two-photon absorption and near-infrared emission simultaneously. This co-crystallization strategy holds considerable promise for the future design and synthesis of more advanced optical materials.

The end-capping group (EG) is the essential electron-withdrawing component of nonfullerene acceptors (NFAs) in bulk heterojunction (BHJ) organic solar cells (OSCs). To systematically probe the impact of two frequent EG functionalization strategies, π-extension and halogenation, in A-DAD-A type NFAs, we synthesized and characterized four such NFAs: BT-BIC, LIC, L4F, and BO-L4F. To assess the relative importance of these strategies, we contrast these NFAs with the baseline acceptors, Y5 and Y6. Up to 16.6% power conversion efficiency (PCE) in binary inverted OSCs with BT-BO-L4F combining π-extension and halogenation was achieved. When these two factors are combined, the effect on optical absorption is cumulative. Single-crystal π–π stacking distances are similar for the EG strategies of π-extension. Increasing the alkyl substituent length from BT-L4F to BT-BO-L4F significantly alters the packing motif and eliminates the EG core interactions of BT-L4F. Electronic structure computations reveal some of the largest NFA π–π electronic couplings observed to date, 103.8 meV in BT-L4F and 47.5 meV in BT-BO-L4F. Computed electronic reorganization energies, 132 and 133 meV for BT-L4F and BT-BO-L4F, respectively, are also lower than Y6 (150 meV). BHJ blends show preferential π-face-on orientation, and both fluorination and π-extension increase NFA crystallinity. Femto/nanosecond transient absorption spectroscopy (fs/nsTA) and integrated photocurrent device analysis (IPDA) indicate that π-extension modifies the phase separation to enhance film ordering and carrier mobility, while fluorination suppresses unimolecular recombination. This systematic study highlights the synergistic effects of NFA π-extension and fluorination in affording efficient OSCs and provides insights into designing next-generation materials.

Quantum mechanical embedding methods hold the promise to transform not just the way calculations are performed, but to significantly reduce computational costs and improve scaling for macro-molecular systems containing hundreds if not thousands of atoms. The field of embedding has grown increasingly broad with many approaches of different intersecting flavors. In this perspective, we lay out the methods into two streams: QM:MM and QM:QM, showcasing the advantages and disadvantages of both. We provide a review of the literature, the underpinning theories including our contributions, and we highlight current applications with select examples spanning both materials and life sciences. We conclude with prospects and future outlook on embedding, and our view on the use of universal test case scenarios for cross-comparisons of the many available (and future) embedding theories.

The synthesis and characterization of new semiconducting materials is essential for developing high‐efficiency organic solar cells. Here, the synthesis, physiochemical properties, thin film morphology, and photovoltaic response of ITN‐F4 and ITzN‐F4, the first indacenodithienothiophene nonfullerene acceptors that combine π‐extension and fluorination, are reported. The neat acceptors and bulk‐heterojunction blend films with fluorinated donor polymer poly{[4,8‐bis[5‐(2‐ethylhexyl)‐4‐fluoro‐2‐thienyl]benzo[1,2‐b:4,5‐b′]‐dithiophene‐2,6‐diyl]‐alt‐[2,5‐thiophenediyl[5,7‐bis(2‐ethylhexyl)‐4,8‐dioxo‐4H,8H‐benzo[1,2‐c:4,5‐c′]dithiophene‐1,3‐diyl]]} (PBDB‐TF, also known as PM6) are investigated using a battery of techniques, including single crystal X‐ray diffraction, fs transient absorption spectroscopy (fsTA), photovoltaic response, space‐charge‐limited current transport, impedance spectroscopy, grazing incidence wide angle X‐ray scattering, and density functional theory level computation. ITN‐F4 and ITzN‐F4 are found to provide power conversion efficiencies greater and internal reorganization energies less than their non‐π‐extended and nonfluorinated counterparts when paired with PBDB‐TF. Additionally, ITN‐F4 and ITzN‐F4 exhibit favorable bulk‐heterojunction relevant single crystal packing architectures. fsTA reveals that both ITN‐F4 and ITzN‐F4 undergo ultrafast hole transfer (<300 fs) in films with PBDB‐TF, despite excimer state formation in both the neat and blend films. Taken together and in comparison to related structures, these results demonstrate that combined fluorination and π‐extension synergistically promote crystallographic π‐face‐to‐face packing, increase crystallinity, reduce internal reorganization energies, increase interplanar π–π electronic coupling, and increase power conversion efficiency.

Accurate single-crystal X-ray diffraction data offer a unique opportunity to compare and contrast the atomistic details of bulk heterojunction photovoltaic small-molecule acceptor structure and packing, as well as provide an essential starting point for computational electronic structure and charge transport analysis. Herein, we report diffraction-derived crystal structures and computational analyses on the n-type semiconductors which enable some of the highest efficiency organic solar cells produced to date, 3,9-bis(2-methylene-(3-(1,1-dicyanomethylene)-indanone))-5,5,11,11-tetrakis(4-hexylphenyl)-

Carbon nanomaterials such as polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), graphene, fullerenes and nanotubes are on the frontline of materials research due to their excellent physical properties, which in recent years, have started to compete with conventional inorganic materials in charge transfer based applications. Recently, a variety of new structures such as single-walled carbon nanobelts (SWCNBs) have been conceived, however, to date only one 'all-phenyl' example has been synthesised, due to problems with their stability and the challenging synthetic methodologies required. This study introduces a new class of phenacene-based SWCNBs and their chalcogenide derivatives, forming the new sub-class of single-walled heterocyclic carbon nanobelts (SWHNBs) which are expected to be both more stable and easier to synthesise than the all carbon analogues. Subsequent theoretical examination of the structure-property relationships found that unlike the small-molecule acene homologues (tetracene, pentacene etc.) which become more reactive with addition of oxygen, an increase in the molecular size of the SWCNBs actually stabilises the HOMO energy level, in correlation with the increasingly negative nuclear independent chemical shift (NICS) calculations of their cylindrical aromaticities. The FMO energies of the phenacene SWCNBs are similar to that of the nanobelt reported by Itami and co-workers, but those of the SWHNBs are deeper and thus more stable. The sulfur derivative of one SWHNB was found to give hole-charge transfer mobilities as high as 1.12 cm2 V-1 s-1, which is three orders of magnitude larger than the corresponding unsubstituted SWCNB (3 × 10-3 cm2 V-1 s-1). These findings suggest the candidates are air-stable and potentially high-performing organic semiconductors for organic thin film transistor (OTFT) devices, while the structure-property relationships uncovered here will aid the design and synthesis of future three-dimensional organic nanomaterials.

Plasmas interacting with liquids enable the generation of a highly reactive interfacial liquid layer due to a variety of processes driven by plasma-produced electrons, ions, photons, and radicals. These processes show promise to enable selective, efficient, and green chemical transformations and new material synthesis approaches. While many differences are to be expected between conventional electrolysis and plasma–liquid interactions, plasma–liquid interactions can be viewed, to a first approximation, as replacing a metal electrode in an electrolytic cell with a gas phase plasma. For this reason, we refer to this method as plasma-driven solution electrochemistry (PDSE). In this Perspective, we address two fundamental questions that should be answered to enable researchers to make transformational advances in PDSE: How far from equilibrium can plasma-induced solution processes be driven? and What are the fundamental differences between PDSE and other more traditional electrochemical processes? Different aspects of both questions are discussed in five sub-questions for which we review the current state-of-the art and we provide a motivation and research vision.