Article
Engineering, Environmental
Mengyang Li, Hongbo Wu, Jing Wang, Zheng Tang, Zaifei Ma
Summary: This study investigates the limitation of open-circuit voltage in organic solar cells utilizing fluorinated acceptors. The reduced voltage is primarily attributed to increased voltage losses and declined external quantum efficiency of electroluminescence. It is found that the limited performance is a result of deteriorated molecular packing and elevated reorganization energy. A strategy involving acceptor sidechain modifications is proposed to address these issues.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Hui Kang, Bing Zheng, Yanxun Li, Shilin Li, Huiqiong Zhou, Lijun Huo, Yuan Zhang
Summary: This study presents a quaternary blend-based strategy for non-fullerene organic solar cells, which leads to concurrent improvements in the device performance and photovoltaic efficiency.
Review
Chemistry, Physical
Wei Liu, Xiang Xu, Jun Yuan, Mario Leclerc, Yingping Zou, Yongfang Li
Summary: Recent advancements in organic solar cells have been achieved with the introduction of non-fullerene acceptors (NFAs), which offer a wide absorption range and easily tunable energy levels. Efficient OSCs rely on good donor-acceptor compatibility, morphological control, and device engineering. Researchers have summarized design and synthesis strategies for NFAs, as well as proposed innovative solutions for material and device engineering to advance the development and applications of OSCs.
ACS ENERGY LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Qingqing Yu, Jingjing Xu, Jiehao Fu, Tongle Xu, Xinhao Yan, Shanshan Chen, Haiyan Chen, Kuan Sun, Zhipeng Kan, Shirong Lu, Zeyun Xiao
Summary: The side chains of a molecule significantly impact the photovoltaic properties of organic solar cells, with differences in performance observed when different small molecule donors are blended with specific acceptors. Crystallinity plays a key role in determining molecular stacking, phase separation, charge transport, and overall photovoltaic properties in small molecule OSCs.
Review
Chemistry, Physical
Qingling Nie, Ailing Tang, Qiang Guo, Erjun Zhou
Summary: The power conversion efficiencies of organic solar cells have been greatly improved with the rapid development of non-fullerene acceptors in recent years, especially using benzothiadiazole as an important electron-accepting unit. By judicious molecular engineering, the optoelectronic properties of BT-based small molecules can be efficiently modulated to achieve high-efficiency photovoltaic devices. The highest PCE reached up to 18% due to the emergence of fused-BT-based molecule Y6, which has promoted the rapid progress of OSCs since 2019.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Lixuan Liu, Yangjun Yan, Shengda Zhao, Tong Wang, Wenqing Zhang, Jianqi Zhang, Xiaotao Hao, Yajie Zhang, Xinghua Zhang, Zhixiang Wei
Summary: The effect of stereoisomers on the photovoltaic performance of organic semiconductor materials has been rarely investigated. This study compares the photovoltaic performance of enantiomerically pure Y6 derivatives and their chiral mixtures. It is found that the racemic mixtures exhibit efficient light harvesting, fast hole transfer, and long polaron lifetime, leading to a higher power conversion efficiency and reduced energy loss compared to the enantiomerically pure molecules. This study highlights the importance of chirality in designing organic solar cells for enhanced efficiency.
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Ning Su, Jianhua Chen, Mengran Peng, Guoping Li, Robert M. Pankow, Ding Zheng, Junqiao Ding, Antonio Facchetti, Tobin J. Marks
Summary: In this study, three novel small molecule acceptors were developed, which showed good solubilities in non-chlorinated organic solvents, broad optical absorptions, close molecular stacking distances, and high electron mobilities. The solar cells fabricated using these acceptors achieved high power conversion efficiencies without halogenated solvents or additives.
JOURNAL OF ENERGY CHEMISTRY
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Cheng Sun, Jin-Woo Lee, Changyeon Lee, Dongchan Lee, Shinuk Cho, Soon-Ki Kwon, Bumjoon J. Kim, Yun-Hi Kim
Summary: In this study, it is demonstrated that the dimerization of a small-molecule acceptor (SMA) significantly enhances the stability of SMA-based organic solar cells (OSC). The dimerized SMA (DYBO) leads to high-efficiency OSCs (> 18% PCE), outperforming OSCs based on their monomer counterpart MYBO (PCE = 17.1%). DYBO-based OSCs show excellent thermal and photo stability, retaining over 80% of initial PCE after 6,000 hours of thermal exposure at 100 degrees C, while MYBO-based OSCs degrade to -80% of their initial PCE value in 36 hours. The high stability of DYBO-based OSCs is mainly attributed to its high glass transition temperature (Tg) of 179 degrees C (Tg of MYBO = 80 degrees C) and improved blend miscibility that stabilizes the blend morphology under thermal stress.
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Junhao Zeng, Conggui Jin, Lin Shao, Chunxiang Li, Renlong Li, Baobing Fan, Alex K. -Y. Jen, Liangbing Xiong, Shaoan Zhang, Yang Lv, Tao Jia, Manjun Xiao, Ruihao Xie
Summary: The end-group modification engineering has been applied in non-fullerene acceptors to improve the performance of organic solar cells. In this study, a series of small-molecule acceptors with different positions of electron-withdrawing thiazole units were designed and synthesized. These acceptors exhibited strong absorption and similar energy levels, leading to higher power conversion efficiency. Further analysis showed that introducing thiazole units into the gamma position of end groups can enhance charge transport, suppress recombination, and improve film morphology.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Yanan Shi, Lingyun Zhu, Yangjun Yan, Meiling Xie, Guang Liang, Jiawei Qiao, Jianqi Zhang, Xiaotao Hao, Kun Lu, Zhixiang Wei
Summary: Non-radiative recombination energy loss (△E-3) is the main source of energy losses in organic solar cells (OSCs). Reducing the energetic disorder by modifying terminal groups has rarely been studied. In this study, acceptors with fluorinated phenyl terminal groups were investigated. The results show that these acceptors have smaller energetic disorder and achieve high efficiency and ultralow △E-3.
ADVANCED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Hongyuan Fu, Jia Yao, Ming Zhang, Lingwei Xue, Qiuju Zhou, Shangyu Li, Ming Lei, Lei Meng, Zhi-Guo Zhang, Yongfang Li
Summary: This study developed a simple and inexpensive boron trifluoride etherate-catalyzed Knoevenagel condensation method for the efficient synthesis of high-performing acceptor-donor-acceptor structured small molecule acceptors. Compared with traditional methods, this approach significantly reduces costs and provides an important synthetic tool for the development of PSCs and other emerging technologies.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Zhenrong Jia, Qing Ma, Lei Meng, Jinyuan Zhang, Shucheng Qin, Zeng Chen, Xiaojun Li, Jianqi Zhang, Jing Li, Zhanjun Zhang, Zhixiang Wei, Yang(Michael) Yang, Yongfang Li
Summary: The synthesis of two isomeric small molecule acceptors m-DTC-Cl-1 and m-DTC-Cl-2 with medium bandgap was performed, and it was found that the chlorine substitution positions significantly influenced the properties and performance of the acceptors. Among them, the OSC with m-DTC-Cl-2 as the acceptor demonstrated high power conversion efficiency, open circuit voltage, and low nonradiative energy loss, making it an ideal candidate for the front cell in TOSCs.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Anastasia Markina, Kun-Han Lin, Wenlan Liu, Carl Poelking, Yuliar Firdaus, Diego Rosas Villalva, Jafar Khan, Sri H. K. Paleti, George T. Harrison, Julien Gorenflot, Weimin Zhang, Stefaan De Wolf, Iain McCulloch, Thomas D. Anthopoulos, Derya Baran, Frederic Laquai, Denis Andrienko
Summary: Efficiencies of organic solar cells have been greatly improved by the development of non-fullerene acceptors (NFAs) and by analyzing the inhomogeneous electrostatic fields at the donor-acceptor interface. It is suggested that a molecular quadrupole moment of around 75 Debye angstrom can balance the trade-offs between open circuit voltage losses and gains in charge generation efficiency in PCE10:NFA solar cells.
ADVANCED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Panagiota Kafourou, Zhuoran Qiao, Mate Toth, Filip Anies, Flurin Eisner, Nicola Gasparini, Martin Heeney
Summary: This study reports the synthesis of two molecular semiconductors with high electron affinity and strong absorption in the visible spectrum using the acceptor-donor-acceptor (A-D-A) approach. The performance of the materials depends on the nature of the solubilizing alkyl chain, with the branched acceptor showing optimum performance.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2022)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Amna Ayub, Muhammad Ans, Sehrish Gul, Ahmed M. Shawky, Khurshid Ayub, Javed Iqbal, Muhammad Ali Hashmi, Ahmed Lakhani
Summary: Unfused non-fullerene acceptors have gained interest due to their advantages of simple synthesis, high yields, and low cost. In this study, five structures of unfused non-fullerene acceptors were designed and evaluated for their photovoltaic properties. Among them, UF-M4 showed better absorption and electron mobility, suggesting its potential in organic photovoltaics.
ELECTRONIC MATERIALS LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yuan Guo, Lingyun Zhu, Ruihong Duan, Guangchao Han, Yuanping Yi
Summary: Low energy loss is crucial for high photovoltaic efficiency in organic solar cells. In this Concept article, we summarize recent theoretical advances in understanding the energy loss mechanisms of A-D-A electron acceptors at the molecular level. We emphasize the importance of electron-vibration coupling in reducing energy loss and describe effective molecular design strategies to achieve low energy loss by decreasing electron-vibration couplings.
CHEMISTRY-A EUROPEAN JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Xiaoming Li, Xiaopeng Duan, Jiawei Qiao, Shilin Li, Yunhao Cai, Jianqi Zhang, Yuan Zhang, Xiaotao Hao, Yanming Sun
Summary: Researchers have successfully expanded the light absorption range of all-polymer solar cells by introducing benzotriazole into the polymer acceptors. The resulting polymer acceptors exhibit higher open-circuit voltage and lower voltage loss, leading to a high efficiency of 16.58% for the ternary all-PSCs.
ADVANCED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Haimei Wu, Baofeng Zhao, Sen Zhang, Zhaozhao Bi, Weiping Wang, Liuchang Wang, Zhiyuan Cong, Wei Ma, Chao Gao
Summary: Polymer solar cells (PSCs) have made significant progress in recent years thanks to A-DA 'D-A type small molecule electron-acceptors (SMEAs). The power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) have exceeded 19% in PSCs incorporating wide-bandgap polymer electron-donors and fine-tuned A-DA 'D-A SMEAs. However, the relatively small open-circuit voltage (VOC) hampers further enhancement of PSC performance.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Tong Wang, Zhi-Hao Chen, Jia-Wei Qiao, Wei Qin, Jian-Qiang Liu, Xing-Zhu Wang, Yong-Jin Pu, Hang Yin, Xiao-Tao Hao
Summary: A general correlation between trap densities and charge transfer dynamics is established in high-efficiency organic photovoltaic blends. The electron transfer rates decrease with increased trap densities, while the hole transfer rates are independent of trap states. The local charges captured by traps induce potential barrier formation, suppressing electron transfer.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jingwei Xue, Heng Zhao, Chao Zhao, Lingxiao Tang, Yilin Wang, Jingming Xin, Zhaozhao Bi, Ke Zhou, Wei Ma
Summary: Researchers developed a strategy to control the crystallization kinetics and enhance the crystallinity of acceptors in organic solar cells by introducing a strong crystalline small molecule, BTR-Cl. This strategy enabled the fabrication of efficient devices without any post-treatment, achieving a remarkable power conversion efficiency of 17.50% via ambient air printing. The generalization of this strategy in other systems suggests its potential for universally fabricating high-efficiency and eco-friendly organic solar cells.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Min Li, Kangning Zhang, Jiawei Qiao, Qian Wang, Linghua Wang, Ming Sun, Lei Ying, Ning Li, Peng Lu, Hang Yin, Xiaoyan Du, Xiaotao Hao
Summary: The investigation of scalable coating techniques for high-performance photoactive materials involves studying the drying dynamics and kinetic quenching depth related degradation. The optimized PM6:BTP-eC9-based organic solar cells achieve power conversion efficiencies up to 16.81% by controlling film formation kinetics. The photoluminescence lifetime distribution serves as an alternative probe for the kinetic quenching depth, governing the degradation rate and providing mechanistic understanding of long-term stability.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jia-Wei Qiao, Feng-Zhe Cui, Lin Feng, Peng Lu, Hang Yin, Xiao-Tao Hao
Summary: By using a modification layer-assisted approach, ultrathin self-powered organic photodetectors with enhanced sensitivity and ultrafast response time performance are constructed, which is attributed to efficient exciton dissociation, energy transfer, and charge extraction processes. The clear correlation between the exciton dissociation process, photogenerated exciton yields, and energy transfer channels provides essential insight into the design of efficient ultrathin organic photodetectors.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Qian Wang, Fengzhe Cui, Mengzhen Sha, Chao Zhang, Xunfan Liao, Hang Yin, Xiaotao Hao
Summary: In order to address the morphological control issue in all-polymer PM-OPDs, researchers modified the film formation kinetics by blending with an insulating polymer. The prolonged crystallization process of polystyrene-blended films allowed for high-ordered molecular arrangements and crystallinity in donor/acceptor phases, resulting in improved charge transport properties and suppressed trap states. This study not only provides valuable insights into the effects of insulating polymers on film formation kinetics mechanism, but also presents a novel strategy to fabricate high-performance all-polymer PM-OPDs.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Renjie Hu, Xiangqian Lu, Xiaotao Hao, Wei Qin
Summary: A high-performance circularly polarized light detector is fabricated by designing a chiral polymer as a donor, enabling detection from ultraviolet to near-infrared. The detector shows excellent ability to distinguish right-handed and left-handed circularly polarized light, with optimized detectivity, responsivity, and electric current. The dissymmetry in electric current can be increased by an external magnetic field, which is a rare report for chiroptical detectors. The chirality-generated orbital angular momentum is a key factor determining the performance of circularly polarized light detection.
ADVANCED MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Mohammed S. G. Hamed, Jude N. Ike, Yilin Wang, Ke Zhou, Wei Ma, Genene Tessema Mola
Summary: Ag/CuPO4 nanocomposite was successfully synthesized for use in thin-film organic solar cells (TFOSCs) to suppress charge recombination and enhance light absorption. The morphological and optical properties were studied, showing a significant improvement in device performance and a 95% increase in power conversion efficiency. The concentration of the nanocomposite in the absorber layer was found to affect photocurrent measurements. This article discusses the effects of the metal nanocomposite in TFOSCs in terms of local surface plasmon resonance and far-field scattering.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Wentao Zou, Chenyang Han, Xu Zhang, Jiawei Qiao, Jifa Yu, Huajun Xu, Huanhuan Gao, Yanna Sun, Yuanyuan Kan, Xiaotao Hao, Guanghao Lu, Yingguo Yang, Ke Gao
Summary: In this study, a highly crystalline small molecule donor, ZW1, was used to fabricate D18:ZW1:Y6 ternary devices, optimizing the morphology and suppressing bimolecular recombination. The thick ternary OSCs achieved a high power conversion efficiency of 16.67% (300 nm thickness), significantly higher than binary devices.
ADVANCED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Yanan Shi, Lingyun Zhu, Yangjun Yan, Meiling Xie, Guang Liang, Jiawei Qiao, Jianqi Zhang, Xiaotao Hao, Kun Lu, Zhixiang Wei
Summary: Non-radiative recombination energy loss (△E-3) is the main source of energy losses in organic solar cells (OSCs). Reducing the energetic disorder by modifying terminal groups has rarely been studied. In this study, acceptors with fluorinated phenyl terminal groups were investigated. The results show that these acceptors have smaller energetic disorder and achieve high efficiency and ultralow △E-3.
ADVANCED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Yunlong Ma, Rui Sun, Zhihao Chen, Sen Zhang, Dongdong Cai, Shuo Wan, Wenyuan Lin, Shu-Quan Zhang, Qisheng Tu, Wei Ma, Jie Min, Xiaotao Hao, Qingdong Zheng
Summary: This study investigates the implication of heteroatoms in the core of heteroheptacene on the properties of nonfullerene acceptors (NFAs). The substitution of oxygen atoms with sulfur atoms changes the molecular packing and morphology, leading to improved charge transport and enhanced efficiency in solar cells. The structure-property relationships discovered in this study offer important guidance for designing high-performance NFAs.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Jianqiu Wang, Zhong Zheng, Pengqing Bi, Zhihao Chen, Yafei Wang, Xiaoyu Liu, Shaoqing Zhang, Xiaotao Hao, Maojie Zhang, Yongfang Li, Jianhui Hou
Summary: Tandem organic solar cells with recorded efficiency are achieved by implementing the ternary strategy to simultaneously reduce energy disorder and non-radiative voltage losses. This work demonstrates that decreasing the voltage losses by ternary strategy and constructing tandem architecture are effective approaches towards improving photovoltaic performance.
NATIONAL SCIENCE REVIEW
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Haojiang Shen, Yixuan Xu, Wentao Zou, Wenqing Zhang, Jianfeng Li, Ping Cai, Yuan Guo, Huajun Xu, Xiaotao Hao, Yanna Sun, Yuanyuan Kan, Yingguo Yang, Ke Gao
Summary: The characteristics of small molecules in all-small-molecule organic solar cells (ASM OSCs), such as well-defined chemical structure and excellent reproducibility between batches, have attracted great attention. However, balancing the aggregation behaviors of small molecules is a challenge, limiting the further development of ASM OSCs' efficiency. The asymmetric ending group strategy has been successfully employed in non-fullerene acceptors (NFAs). Inspired by this, two asymmetric and symmetric small molecule donors, Por-DPP-TR and PTR, were synthesized. The efficiency of ASM OSCs reached 16.31%, ranking as one of the highest PCEs.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2023)