Morphology visualization of P3HT:Fullerene blends by using subsurface atomic layer deposition

Acid-Compatible Halide Perovskite Photocathodes Utilizing Atomic Layer Deposited TiO2 for Solar-Driven Hydrogen Evolution

“…A more detailed investigation of the low-temperature ALD TiO 2 on PC 61 BM is required to more fully understand the unique role of the PC 61 BM + ALD TiO 2 hybrid ETL and its deposition process conditions on the device equivalent circuit. Breifly, PC 61 BM tends to form highly ordered crystalline grains and exhibits a relatively high T g value (120 °C), both of which limited infiltration of and significant reaction with other ALD precursors . This expectation corroborates SEM imaging in which ALD TiO 2 is observed to form a conformal film on top of the PC 61 BM layer (Figure b).…”

Bridging the thermodynamics and kinetics of temperature-induced morphology evolution in polymer/fullerene organic solar cell bulk heterojunction

“…36 Recently, we reported a new labeling approach based on vapor phase infiltration (VPI) that can be utilized to characterize the BHJ morphology evolution as a function of blend composition and processing method. [37][38][39][40] VPI infuses inorganic materials into an organic matrix by exposure to gaseous precursors (for this study diethylzinc and water) that diffuse into the film and in situ convert to an inorganic product (in this case, ZnO). 41 The diffusion and retention of the gaseous precursors, and hence the location of the inorganic ''label'', are governed by the local structure and composition of each domain.…”

“…41 The diffusion and retention of the gaseous precursors, and hence the location of the inorganic ''label'', are governed by the local structure and composition of each domain. [38][39][40] The high contrast between the organic matrix and the deposited inorganic phase offers distinct, simple and fast visualization of the different phases by scanning electron microscope (SEM). In earlier studies, we found that fullerene-rich domains inhibit precursor diffusion and retention, affectively preventing the incorporation of the inorganic phase in fullerene-rich domains.…”

“…Applying this methodology we were able to visualize the morphology of polymer:fullerene blend films and identify the scale of phase separation, estimate fullerene content and degree of crystallinity, study the effect of the fullerene type on film morphology and prepare a 3D reconstruction of the BHJ morphology in working devices. [37][38][39][40] In this study, we harness a comprehensive set of techniques to monitor BHJ morphology evolution during thermal annealing over a wide range of time and length scales, from initial molecular precipitation associated with the ''burn-in'' effect, to micrometer size aggregation. The model system we chose is poly[(5,6-difluoro-2,1,3-benzothiadiazol-4,7-diyl)-alt-(3,3 00 0 -di(2octyldodecyl)-2,2 0 ;5 0 ,2 00 ;5 00 ,2 00 0 -quaterthiophen-5,5 00 0 -diyl)]:phenyl-C 61 -butyric acid methyl ester (PCE11:PCBM, Fig.…”

Tuning the optical properties of luminescent down shifting layers based on organic dyes to increase the efficiency and lifetime of P3HT: PCBM photovoltaic devices

“…Among them, solar cells based on organic materials are currently the subject of intense research and development [7,8]. A representative device is one whose active layer consists of the conjugated polymer poly-3 hexyl-thiophene (P3HT) and the fullerene phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) forming a bulk heterojunction [9][10][11]. These devices are based on materials in solution that have a broad spectrum of optical absorption, good chemical stability, and can be processed by printing techniques on flexible substrates [12,13], which makes them relatively versatile products that can be used in applications that are unattainable to conventional siliconbased solar cells [14].…”