Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Jun Zan, Yujuan Huang, Huiqin Cui, Jianbin Chen, Longlong Zhang
Summary: In donor-acceptor (D-A) heterojunction polymer solar cells, photocreated excitons evolve into the charge-transfer (CT) state at D/A interfaces. In some cases, the exciton can also trap one charge by forming a trion state. The mechanisms of charge transfer and separation for these trions at D/A interfaces are still not fully understood but they are crucial for photovoltaic performance. In this study, the electronic properties of the trion-CT state were theoretically investigated using a tight-binding model. The results show that the interfacial trion-CT state remains a bound state with one electron transferring to the acceptor and one exciton remaining on the donor. The amount of charge transfer can be adjusted by intrinsic factors including charge delocalization, D-A coupling strength, electron-lattice and electron-electron interactions, and the D-A energetic offset. Charge separation of the trion-CT state under an electric field was also studied, and the results suggest that the trion-CT state is harder to dissociate compared to the exciton-CT state.
ORGANIC ELECTRONICS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Huide Wang, Yonghong Zeng, FanXu Meng, Rui Cao, Yi Liu, Zhinan Guo, Tingting Wang, Haiguo Hu, Sidi Fan, Yatao Yang, S. Wageh, Omar A. Al-Hartomy, Abul Kalam, Yonghong Shao, Yu-Jia Zeng, Dianyuan Fan, Han Zhang
Summary: A black phosphorus/rhodamine 6G/molybdenum disulfide (BP/R6G/MoS2) photodiode with high responsivity has been achieved by utilizing interfacial charge transfer of R6G molecules between heterojunction layers. The formed vdWs interface efficiently separates the additional photogenerated electrons and holes generated by R6G molecules, resulting in high-performance photoresponse. By sensitizing the devices with the dye molecule R6G, enhanced photodetection performance is obtained without sacrificing the photoresponse speed, with R increasing by 14.8-20.4 times and specific detectivity (D*) increasing by 24.9-34.4 times. The proposed strategy of interlayer assembly of dye molecules may pave a new way for high-performance photodetection based on 2D vdWs heterojunctions with high responsivity and fast response speed.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Hongbo Wu, Zaifei Ma, Mengyang Li, Hao Lu, Ailing Tang, Erjun Zhou, Jin Wen, Yanming Sun, Wolfgang Tress, Jogvan Magnus Haugaard Olsen, Simone Meloni, Zhishan Bo, Zheng Tang
Summary: Donor halogenation improves the performance of organic solar cells by increasing the energy of the charge transfer state and reducing reorganization energy. The impact of donor halogenation varies depending on the acceptor type, with stronger effects observed for Y-series acceptors. Halogen substitution on side groups of the donor molecule is more effective in reducing voltage losses.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Taeseong Kim, Younghwan Im, Sujeong Kim, Myeong Seok Goh, Hojun Moon, Sun-Min Park, Misook Kang
Summary: This study investigates the effects of changes in charge transport and photo-quantity on photocatalytic water splitting using a new ternary heterojunction n-WO3/p-WS2/Au. The results show that the ternary heterojunction particles exhibit improved photochemical properties and can generate more hydrogen compared to single particles. The loaded Au acts as an electron trapper, expanding the reduction reaction sites and enhancing hydrogen generation.
JOURNAL OF ALLOYS AND COMPOUNDS
(2023)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Adel Daoud, Ali Cheknane, Afek Meftah, Jean Michel Nunzi, Manal Shalabi, Hikmat S. Hilal
Summary: Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) are gaining attention as alternatives to traditional photovoltaic solar cells due to their easy manufacturing methods, understandable operating mechanisms, and environmental friendliness. In these solar cells, the competition between electron-hole charge separation and recombination processes determines the fate of the excited electron, while the type of electrolyte determines the competition between recombination reactions and dye regeneration. Despite early studies on combining p-DSSCs and n-DSSCs to create t-DSSCs, the performance is usually poor due to the competing processes, necessitating improvements in DSSCs. This article focuses on the effects of using NiO as a working electrode and discusses the impact of sensitizer, redox couple, and transparent conducting oxide electrode on cell performance.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ziyun Huang, Ruimin Zhou, Min Lv, Hao Zhang, Chen Yang, Yanan Shi, Yi Tang, Jianqi Zhang, Kun Lu, Zhixiang Wei
Summary: This study introduces a new method to improve the performance of all-small-molecule organic solar systems through ternary strategies, incorporating a small amount of the IDIC acceptor into a ZR1-Cl : IDIC-4Cl based binary system. Results show that the good miscibility enabled by two structurally similar acceptors can enhance short circuit current, open circuit voltage, and fill factor, thereby increasing power conversion efficiency.
MATERIALS CHEMISTRY FRONTIERS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Zhizhao Cai, Xinyuan Ma, Jiefeng Cai, Zhenye Zhan, Dongxu Lin, Ke Chen, Pengyi Liu, Weiguang Xie
Summary: In this study, ultrathin BCP and ZrAcac were inserted between the perovskite and BHJ layers as an interface modification, successfully regulating carrier extraction and inhibiting charge recombination at the interface. This led to significant improvements in open-circuit voltage and fill factor, resulting in high conversion efficiency.
JOURNAL OF POWER SOURCES
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Eman Nabil, Ahmed A. Hasanein, Rua B. Alnoman, Mohamed Zakaria
Summary: The study investigates cosensitization of the semiconducting electrode in dye-sensitized solar cells, focusing on the interaction between BP-2 and SQ02 and the limited unidirectional intermolecular charge transfer observed. The results suggest the potential for molecular engineering to optimize the functionality of cosensitization.
JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL INFORMATION AND MODELING
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Philipp Marlow, Felix Manger, Karen Fischer, Christian Sprau, Alexander Colsmann
Summary: This research elucidates the mechanism behind the formation of stable P3HT dispersions, revealing that electrostatic effects play a dominant role in nanoparticle growth and dispersion stability. The study also shows that additional charges can be generated by light to enhance the electrostatic dispersion stability. This research provides a new approach for the fabrication of organic solar cells and optoelectronic thin-film devices.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Zifu Zang, Ying Yu, Peng Song, Fengcai Ma, Yuanzuo Li
Summary: This study systematically investigated and designed several configurations of nonfused acceptors at the micro level. The designed DBPT series exhibited narrower gaps, broader absorption range, larger electron-accepting power, and improved charge separation. The PBDB-T/DBPT-4F device showed a better power conversion efficiency of 14.69% due to improved interfacial transfer properties.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY C
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Shahidul Alam, Haya Aldosari, Christopher E. Petoukhoff, Tomas Vary, Wejdan Althobaiti, Maryam Alqurashi, Hua Tang, Jafar I. Khan, Vojtech Nadazdy, Peter Mueller-Buschbaum, Gregory C. Welch, Frederic Laquai
Summary: This study investigates the thermally-induced degradation of organic photovoltaic devices and its effect on their optical properties, photophysics, and morphology. The results show that the degradation limits the open-circuit voltage and fill factor of the devices, while the short-circuit current density is only slightly affected. Energy-resolved electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements reveal a higher energy barrier for charge transfer in the degraded samples. Furthermore, the study finds that field-dependent charge generation significantly limits device performance.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Dhanasekaran Vikraman, Sajjad Hussain, Hailiang Liu, Syed Hassan Abbas Jaffery, K. Karuppasamy, Jun-Ho Lee, A. Kathalingam, Jongwan Jung, Hyun-Seok Kim
Summary: This paper introduces a facile solution route to fabricate MoTe2 grain nano-domains for hybrid polymer heterojunction solar cells and photodetectors. The effects of different MoTe2 nanostructure proportions on the performance of solar cells and photodetectors were investigated. Maximum power conversion efficiency of 8.94% was achieved for solar cells with 10 vol% MoTe2 nanostructure inclusion. A fabricated photodetector using 10 vol%-MoTe2 @PBDB-T:ITIC film achieved maximum detectivity of 2.62 x 10(10) Jones under 656 nm laser source.
JOURNAL OF MATERIALS RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGY-JMR&T
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Stefan W. Tabernig, Lin Yuan, Andrea Cordaro, Zhi Li Teh, Yijun Gao, Robert J. Patterson, Andreas Pusch, Shujuan Huang, Albert Polman
Summary: We have designed an optically resonant bulk heterojunction solar cell to study the optoelectronic properties of nanostructured p-n junctions. By optimizing the nanoscale pattern, we were able to improve the efficiency of the solar cell by enhancing the absorption and charge-carrier extraction behavior. Our experiments and simulations showed significant improvement in infrared response and current gain in the patterned solar cell compared to the planar reference, demonstrating the importance of nanostructured geometries in enhancing solar cell performance.
Review
Engineering, Electrical & Electronic
Ishan C. Ghosekar, Ganesh C. Patil
Summary: Organic solar cells (OSCs) show strong potential in future solar cell technology due to their low production costs, small weight, printability, solution processing, and ability to use flexible substrates. Major specifications for commercializing OSCs include long device lifespan, enhanced environmental stability, and high power conversion efficiency. Developing low energy gap organic polymers, transport materials, and multi-layer system architecture can increase PCE, but challenges remain in achieving environmental stability and longevity.
SEMICONDUCTOR SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Weidong Hou, Huazhang Guo, Minghong Wu, Liang Wang
Summary: This study presents a facile EDC/NHS-assisted linking strategy to enhance charge separation and reaction dynamics in heterojunction photocatalysts. The synthesis of amide-bonded carbon quantum dot-g-C3N4 (CQD-CN) heterojunction photocatalysts demonstrates high selectivity in CO2 reduction, with exceptional stability even after 12 hours of continuous testing.
