Incorporating semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes as efficient charge extractors in organic solar cells

Abeygunasekara, Waranatha L.; Hiralal, Pritesh; Samaranayake, Lilantha; Chien, Chih-Tao; Kumar, Abhishek; Flewitt, Andrew J.; Karunaratne, Veranja; Amaratunga, G.A.J.

doi:10.1063/1.4916512

Cited by 19 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 34 publications

(52 reference statements)

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“…showing improved PCE efficiencies above 6% in a PTB7/PCBM solar cell. [164] This work also showed the importance of good SWNT dispersion and network formation at low tube loading using a N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) dispersant.…”

Section: Groupmentioning

confidence: 84%

Functional Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes and Nanoengineered Networks for Organic‐ and Perovskite‐Solar‐Cell Applications

Barbero

Stranks

2016

Advanced Materials

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Carbon nanotubes have a variety of remarkable electronic and mechanical properties that, in principle, lend them to promising optoelectronic applications. However, the field has been plagued by heterogeneity in the distributions of synthesized tubes and uncontrolled bundling, both of which have prevented nanotubes from reaching their full potential. Here, a variety of recently demonstrated solution-processing avenues is presented, which may combat these challenges through manipulation of nanoscale structures. Recent advances in polymer-wrapping of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) are shown, along with how the resulting nanostructures can selectively disperse tubes while also exploiting the favorable properties of the polymer, such as light-harvesting ability. New methods to controllably form nanoengineered SWNT networks with controlled nanotube placement are discussed. These nanoengineered networks decrease bundling, lower the percolation threshold, and enable a strong enhancement in charge conductivity compared to random networks, making them potentially attractive for optoelectronic applications. Finally, SWNT applications, to date, in organic and perovskite photovoltaics are reviewed, and insights as to how the aforementioned recent advancements can lead to improved device performance provided.

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Section: Groupmentioning

confidence: 84%

Functional Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes and Nanoengineered Networks for Organic‐ and Perovskite‐Solar‐Cell Applications

Barbero

Stranks

2016

Advanced Materials

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“…Figure b also shows the highest occupied molecular orbital and lowest unoccupied molecular orbital levels of the dispersant polymer P3HT, which are well matched with the SWCNT valence and conduction bands, respectively, for efficient hole transport. A portion of the previous work involving the incorporation of SWCNTs in P3HT solar cells has utilized high concentrations of P3HT (above 10 wt%) and low concentrations of SWCNTs (less than 0.1 wt%) . In those cells, P3HT acts as the majority donor, and SWCNTs aid in carrier transport rather than act as the primary electron donor.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Finally, a molybdenum oxide (MoO x ) hole transport layer and silver (Ag) anode are thermally evaporated to complete the device. [ 29 ] In those cells, P3HT acts as the majority donor, and SWCNTs aid in carrier transport rather than act as the primary electron donor. [ 25,26 ] These SWCNTs have a diameter range of 0.8-1.2 nm, a broad chiral distribution enriched in the (8,7) chirality, and a semiconducting purity exceeding 97% as determined by optical absorbance spectroscopy.…”

Section: Enhancing Large-area Swcnt-fullerene Solar Cell Performance mentioning

confidence: 99%

Enhanced Uniformity and Area Scaling in Carbon Nanotube–Fullerene Bulk‐Heterojunction Solar Cells Enabled by Solvent Additives

Shastry¹,

Clark²,

Rowberg³

et al. 2015

Advanced Energy Materials

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blends have recently demonstrated power conversion effi ciencies (PCEs) as high as 3.1% (2.5% NREL certifi ed) for device areas of 0.06-1.2 mm 2 . [7][8][9][10][11][12][13] These devices show excellent ambient stability and nearinfrared (NIR) absorption, [ 11 ] in contrast to other widely researched organic and perovskite photovoltaic technologies. [ 14,15 ] Despite these advances, SWCNT-fullerene solar cells have to date failed to demonstrate high performance over device areas larger than ≈1 mm 2 . In contrast, other TFPV technologies are routinely demonstrated at areas of 6 mm 2 and above. [ 15,16 ] Importantly, SWCNT-fullerene solar cells must maintain performance over areas on par with other TFPV technologies in order to exploit their exceptional absorption and chemical stability in hybrid or tandem photovoltaics, where an SWCNT-fullerene subcell would add value by harvesting NIR light and slowing degradation. Recently, it has been shown that trap-assisted recombination within the active layer limits performance in SWCNT-fullerene solar cells. [ 17 ] This recombination is in part due to the spatial inhomogeneities resulting from fullerene or SWCNT aggregates within the BHJ active layer. Such aggregates decrease the interfacial area between the donor and acceptor domains, limiting effi cient exciton dissociation and charge extraction. These aggregates also provide conductive pathways between both electrodes that electrically short the cell and limit both shortcircuit current density ( J sc ) and open-circuit voltage ( V oc ). [ 18 ] As the solar cell areas are increased, these negative effects begin to dominate the overall device performance, oftentimes with catastrophic consequences.Here, we report improved BHJ morphology and the resulting large-area device performance by incorporating the solvent additive 1,8-diiodooctane (DIO) within the SWCNT-fullerene active layer. DIO has previously been used as an additive in polymer solar cells and is known to break apart PC 71 BM aggregates, [ 16,19 ] which can have tremendous impact on solar cell performance. [ 20 ] We systematically vary the DIO concentration in the SWCNT-fullerene blend, fi nding that an optimal concentration of 1 vol% DIO enables large-area device performance that is comparable to smaller area devices. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) reveals that the addition of DIO signifi cantly reduces the Single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) fullerene solar cells have recently attracted attention due to their low-cost processing, high environmental stability, and near-infrared absorption. While SWCNT-fullerene bulk-heterojunction photovoltaics employing an inverted architecture and polychiral SWCNTs have achieved effi ciencies exceeding 3% over device areas of ≈1 mm 2 , large-area SWCNT solar cells have not yet been demonstrated. In particular, with increasing device area, spatial inhomogeneities in the SWCNT fi lm have limited overall device performance. Here, 1,8-diiodooctane (DIO) is utilized as a solvent additive to reduce fullerene domain size and to impro...

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Section: The Development Of Photovoltaics For Indoor Applicationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Since the first report of OSCs, significant progress has been made during the past two decades, with PCE steadily improving from less than 4% to over 15% under AM1.5 illumination. [36][37][38][39] It was demonstrated by Freunek et al that the optimum bandgap for harvesting indoor light is 1.9 eV instead of 1.4 eV for standard sunlight. 40 Therefore, unlike mc-Si cells, the donor/acceptor materials as an active layer inside OSCs usually have a better spectral match with indoor light, which can generate higher PCE in IPV applications.…”

Section: Oscs For Indoor Applicationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indoor photovoltaics, The Next Big Trend in solution‐processed solar cells

Hou

Amaratunga

2021

InfoMat

Self Cite

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Indoor photovoltaics (IPVs) have attracted considerable interest for their potential to power small and portable electronics and photonic devices. The recent advancemes in circuit design and device optimizations has led to the power required to operate electronics for the internet of things (IoT), such as distributed sensors, remote actuators, and communication devices, being remarkably reduced. Therefore, various types of sensors and a large number of nodes can be wireless or even batteryless powered by IPVs. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of the recent developments in IPVs. We primarily focus on third‐generation solution‐processed solar cell technologies, which include organic solar cells, dye‐sensitized solar cells, perovskite solar cells, and newly developed colloidal quantum dot indoor solar cells. Besides, the device design principles are also discussed in relation to the unique characteristics of indoor lighting conditions. Challenges and prospects for the development of IPV are also summarized, which, hopefully, can lead to a better understanding of future IPV design as well as performance enhancement.

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Incorporating semiconducting single-walled carbon nanotubes as efficient charge extractors in organic solar cells

Cited by 19 publications

References 34 publications

Functional Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes and Nanoengineered Networks for Organic‐ and Perovskite‐Solar‐Cell Applications

Functional Single‐Walled Carbon Nanotubes and Nanoengineered Networks for Organic‐ and Perovskite‐Solar‐Cell Applications

Enhanced Uniformity and Area Scaling in Carbon Nanotube–Fullerene Bulk‐Heterojunction Solar Cells Enabled by Solvent Additives

Indoor photovoltaics, The Next Big Trend in solution‐processed solar cells

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