Large area colloidal photonic crystals for light trapping in flexible organic photovoltaic modules applied using a roll-to-roll Langmuir-Blodgett method

Parchine, Mikhail; Kohoutek, T.; Bardosova, Maria; Pemble, Martyn E.

doi:10.1016/j.solmat.2018.05.026

Cited by 36 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…Among the wide variety of PC forms, the ordered assembly of colloidal nanoparticles, which is known as colloidal crystals, is one of the most promising PC materials [5,6,7]. They have gained increasing attention of researchers during the past decades not only because of the curiosity about the fundamental science of their formation [8,9] but also due to their potential applications in bioassays [10,11], sensors and displays [12,13], security identification [14], anticounterfeiting [15], light trapping in solar cell [16,17] and so on. Besides, colloidal crystals play an important role in the fabrication of inverse opal materials, where they are used as templates [18,19,20].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Langmuir–Blodgett is another broadly-used method where the colloids float and form a monolayer film on a liquid surface. The floating particles assemble into a close-packed arrangement to reduce the available surface area and thus the total surface tension as the film is compressed, which is then “scooped” to a substrate [16,17,34]. Electrostatics can be used to assist the spontaneous assembling process for increasing the fabrication speed [35].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Convenient and Efficient Fabrication of Colloidal Crystals Based on Solidification-Induced Colloidal Assembly

et al. 2019

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The simple yet efficient and versatile fabrication of colloidal crystals was investigated based on the solidification-induced colloidal crystallization process with particle/water suspension as precursor. The resulting colloidal crystals were constituted by crystal grains with sizes ranging from several tens of micrometers to a few millimeters. Each of the grains had a close-hexagonal array of colloids, which endowed the bulk colloidal crystal powders with some specific optical properties. The freezing of water was shown as the major driving force to form colloidal crystal grains, which supersaturated the solution with nanoparticles and thus induced the formation and growth of colloidal crystal seeds. This process is intrinsically different from those conventional methods based on shearing force, surface tension, columbic interaction or magnetic interaction, revealing a new strategy to fabricate colloidal crystals in a convenient and efficient way.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Convenient and Efficient Fabrication of Colloidal Crystals Based on Solidification-Induced Colloidal Assembly

et al. 2019

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“…This interest is due to the importance of colloidal crystal formation in understanding the organizational processes in material and life sciences. Colloidal crystals have also found a large number of practical applications, such as in optoelectronics, data storage, template preparation, solar energy harvesting systems, nanoporous membranes, sensors, anticounterfeiting agents, and nanostructured elements of numerous other devices.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…in material and life sciences. Colloidal crystals have also found a large number of practical applications, such as in optoelectronics, [2][3][4] data storage, 5,6 template preparation, 7,8 solar energy harvesting systems, 9 nanoporous membranes, [10][11][12] sensors, [13][14][15][16] anticounterfeiting agents, 17 and nanostructured elements of numerous other devices.…”

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confidence: 99%

Colloidal liquid crystal type assemblies of spheroidal polystyrene core/polyglycidol‐rich shell particles (P[S/PGL]) formed at the liquid‐silicon‐air interface by a directed dewetting process

Mickiewicz

Basiǹska

Gosecka

et al. 2019

Polymers for Advanced Techs

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A method for the preparation of stripe‐like monolayers of microspheroids is described. The particles were obtained from polystyrene core/polyglycidol‐rich shell microspheres by stretching poly (vinyl alcohol) films that contain embedded particles. The stretching was performed under controlled conditions at temperatures above the Tg of the films and particles. The elongated films were dissolved in water, and the microspheroids were subsequently removed and purified from the poly (vinyl alcohol). The aspect ratio (AR) of the particles, which denotes the ratio of the lengths of the longer to shorter particle axes, was determined by the film elongation. The AR values were in the range of 2.9‐7.7. Spheroidal particles with various ARs were deposited onto silicon wafers from an ethanol (EtOH) suspension. The particle concentration and volume of the suspension were the same in each experiment. Evaporation of the EtOH yielded stripes of spherical particles packed into nematic‐type colloidal crystals and assembled into monolayers. The orientation of the stripes after ethanol evaporation was perpendicular to the triphasic (silicon‐ethanol‐air) interface along the silicon substrate. The adsorbed stripes on the wafers were characterized in terms of their interstripe distance (ID), stripe width, and crystal domain size. Nematic‐type spheroid arrangements in the stripes were the dominant structure, which enabled denser packing of the particles into colloidal crystals than that allowed by the smectic‐type arrangements. Furthermore, the number of spheroids adsorbed per surface unit of the silicon wafers was similar for all ARs, but the width and frequency of the spheroid stripes adsorbed on the wafers were different.

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“…Self-assembly refers to the spontaneous process of forming a thermodynamically stable, structurally defined, and specific congeries between structural units such as molecules and nanoparticles through non-covalent interactions under equilibrium conditions. Monodisperse microspheres can be self-assembled in different ways to obtain different kinds, properties, and applications of PCs and other structures such as hollow sphere colloidal PCs [ 16 ], dendritic fibrous nano-silica PCs [ 17 ], large-area silica microspheres/nanospheres [ 18 ], and large-area flexible colloidal photonic crystal film [ 19 , 20 ]. Poly(styrene-methyl methacrylate-acrylic acid) (P(St-MMA-AA)) nanospheres were used to produced polymer colloidal crystals by self-assembly of refrigerated centrifugation [ 21 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Synthesis of Silica Microspheres—Inspired by the Formation of Ice Crystals—With High Homogeneous Particle Sizes and Their Applications in Photonic Crystals

et al. 2018

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Silica microspheres (SMs) must possess the performances of desirable monodispersity, narrow particle size distribution, and high sphericity for preparing photonic crystals (PCs) and other materials such as microspheres reference material, etc. We have adopted the techniques of increasing reactant concentration and raising the temperature to improve the synthesis rate of SMs, gaining inspiration from the formation mechanism of ice crystals. SMs with uniform particle sizes (polydispersity index less than 0.05) and good spherical features were fabricated through homogeneous nucleation. The mathematical relationship between particle sizes of SMs and reactant concentrations is further fitted. High accuracy of the regression equation is verified by an F-test and verification experiment. Highly ordered PCs (the stacking fault is about 1.5%, and the point defect is about 10−3) with dense stacked opal structures have been obtained by self-assembly of SMs. In addition, highly ordered PCs (the stacking fault is about 3%, and the point defect is about 10−3) with non-dense packed opal structure and inverse opal structure were successfully prepared. PCs of inverse opal structure were used to examine their response characteristics to identify ethanol, exhibiting good performance. Our research may provide significant inspiration for the development of other sorts of microspheres.

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Large area colloidal photonic crystals for light trapping in flexible organic photovoltaic modules applied using a roll-to-roll Langmuir-Blodgett method

Cited by 36 publications

References 32 publications

Convenient and Efficient Fabrication of Colloidal Crystals Based on Solidification-Induced Colloidal Assembly

Convenient and Efficient Fabrication of Colloidal Crystals Based on Solidification-Induced Colloidal Assembly

Colloidal liquid crystal type assemblies of spheroidal polystyrene core/polyglycidol‐rich shell particles (P[S/PGL]) formed at the liquid‐silicon‐air interface by a directed dewetting process

Synthesis of Silica Microspheres—Inspired by the Formation of Ice Crystals—With High Homogeneous Particle Sizes and Their Applications in Photonic Crystals

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