Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Zhaoyang Yao, Xiangjian Cao, Xingqi Bi, Tengfei He, Yu Li, Xinyuan Jia, Huazhe Liang, Yaxiao Guo, Guankui Long, Bin Kan, Chenxi Li, Xiangjian Wan, Yongsheng Chen
Summary: By performing complete peripheral fluorination on a two-dimensional conjugation extended molecular platform of CH-series small molecular acceptors (SMAs), an acceptor of CH8F with eight fluorine atoms surrounding the molecular backbone was obtained. This method improves the ordering of molecular packings, reduces exciton binding energies, and achieves an efficiency of 18.80% for D18:CH8F-based organic solar cells, which is better than the efficiency of 17.91% for CH6F-based ones.
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Zhengyong Shao, Zhicheng Zhu, Hua Tan, Xiankang Yu, Junting Yu, Weiguo Zhu
Summary: Chlorination is an effective technique to adjust the performance of SMAs, with chlorinated end units enhancing the absorption ability and improving the performance of polymer solar cells. Chlorination proves to be an effective approach in obtaining high-performance SMAs.
ORGANIC ELECTRONICS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Ziqi Zhang, Dan Deng, Yi Li, Jianwei Ding, Qiong Wu, Lili Zhang, Guangjie Zhang, Muhammad Junaid Iqbal, Rui Wang, Jianqi Zhang, Xiaohui Qiu, Zhixiang Wei
Summary: The study introduces a polymerized small-molecule acceptor (PJ1) as an interface modulator to optimize the morphology of all-small-molecule organic solar cells (ASM-OSCs) and improve power conversion efficiency. Adding a small amount of PJ1 effectively condenses the morphology, enhances crystallinity, and decreases domain sizes in ASM-OSCs, ultimately leading to accelerated hole transfer and enhanced charge transport.
ADVANCED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Bin-Wen Chen, Piao-Yang Xu, Si-Hao Chen, Ke Luan, Zhen-Lin Qiu, Lu Wang, Le-Shan Dai, Yun-Fei Li, Da-Qin Yun, Lin-Long Deng, Su-Yuan Xie, Lan-Sun Zheng
Summary: Three novel donor-acceptor-acceptor small molecules with benzotriazole as the central building block are synthesized and investigated for their molecular structure, electrochemical behavior, and optical properties. Vacuum-deposited small-molecule organic solar cells (SMOSCs) fabricated with these molecules and C-70 as the acceptor exhibit power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) in the range of 6.42-7.43%. One of the molecules shows a promising PCE of 14.84% under indoor illumination, demonstrating its potential in indoor photovoltaic applications.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Huazhe Liang, Xingqi Bi, Hongbin Chen, Tengfei He, Yi Lin, Yunxin Zhang, Kangqiao Ma, Wanying Feng, Zaifei Ma, Guankui Long, Chenxi Li, Bin Kan, Hongtao Zhang, Oleg A. Rakitin, Xiangjian Wan, Zhaoyang Yao, Yongsheng Chen
Summary: Given the ease of synthesis and polarization of bromine compared to homomorphic fluorine and chlorine, it is surprising that high-performance brominated small molecule acceptors are rare. This may be due to undesirable film morphologies caused by steric hindrance and excessive crystallinity. To overcome this, three acceptors were constructed with stepwise bromination on central units to enhance intermolecular packing, crystallinity, and dielectric constant without damaging favorable intermolecular packing through end groups. As a result, PM6:CH22-based binary organic solar cells achieved the highest efficiency of 19.06% for brominated acceptors, and a record-breaking efficiency of 15.70% when the active layers were further thickened to around 500 nm. By exhibiting such a rare high-performance brominated acceptor, this work highlights the potential for achieving record-breaking organic solar cells through delicate bromination.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Wanru Xu, Yilin Chang, Xiangwei Zhu, Zhenhua Wei, Xiaoli Zhang, Xiangnan Sun, Kun Lu, Zhixiang Wei
Summary: Small molecule donor/polymer acceptor (SD/PA)-type organic solar cells (OSCs) have attracted attention for their high efficiency and thermal stability. However, their development lags behind polymer donor/small molecule acceptor (PD/SA)-type OSCs. This review analyzes the key factors affecting the photovoltaic performances of SD/PA-type OSCs and provides insights on their future development.
CHINESE CHEMICAL LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Seunggyun Hong, Chang Eun Song, Du Hyeon Ryu, Sang Kyu Lee, Won Suk Shin, Eunhee Lim
Summary: This study introduces two cyclohexyl-substituted non-fullerene small molecules with the same molecular backbone and different properties. One molecule exhibits higher thermal stability and crystallinity, while the other can form a uniform film through solution-processing due to enhanced solubility. By pairing with a polymer donor, the organic solar cell device based on one of the small molecules shows improved performance with a high power conversion efficiency.
NEW JOURNAL OF CHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
ChuanMing Wu, YiXiang Li, Ze Yu, MeiTing Luo, Dongdong Wang, XinYe Wang, Huili Ma
Summary: Three D-pi-A molecules were designed and studied in this research, with FQ as the acceptor and Cz or dPA as the donor. Experimental results showed a blue shift in emission color and an increase in energy gap when the donor was switched from dPA to Cz, while theoretical analysis indicated similar changes could occur.
CHEMICAL PHYSICS LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Shangyu Li, Rui Zhang, Ming Zhang, Jia Yao, Zhengxing Peng, Qi Chen, Cen Zhang, Bowen Chang, Yang Bai, Hongyuan Fu, Yanni Ouyang, Chunfeng Zhang, Julian A. Steele, Thamraa Alshahrani, Maarten B. J. Roeffaers, Eduardo Solano, Lei Meng, Feng Gao, Yongfang Li, Zhi-Guo Zhang
Summary: A new class of dimeric Y6-based small-molecule acceptors (SMAs) tethered with flexible spacers is reported to regulate their aggregation and relaxation behavior. These tethered SMAs show improved structural order compared to the Y6 counterpart in polymer blends with PM6. They also possess larger glass transition temperatures to suppress thermodynamic relaxation in mixed domains. The dimeric blend demonstrates unprecedented open circuit voltage and conversion efficiency, along with reduced burn-in efficiency loss and excellent operating stability.
ADVANCED MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Jinhui Zhao, Xiankang Yu, Mengbing Zhu, Hao Xia, Wei Tang, Wenhong Peng, Jiali Guo, Can Qian, Bin Zhang, Yu Liu, Hua Tan, Weiguo Zhu
Summary: This study utilized diester-terthiophene as a pi-bridged unit to construct wide-band gap small-molecule donors, achieving ordered molecular stacking and deep E-HOMO levels. The BER6 and BECN molecules demonstrated high power conversion efficiency and a high V-OC in all-small-molecule OSCs.
ACS APPLIED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Han Yu, Yan Wang, Xinhui Zou, Han Han, Ha Kyung Kim, Zefan Yao, Zhibo Wang, Yuhao Li, Ho Ming Ng, Wentao Zhou, Jianquan Zhang, Shangshang Chen, Xinhui Lu, Kam Sing Wong, Zonglong Zhu, He Yan, Huawei Hu
Summary: Tuning the properties of non-fullerene acceptors (NFAs) through halogenation is a promising strategy to enhance the performance of organic solar cells (OSCs). However, the influence of F and Cl choice on molecular packing and performance between small-molecule and polymeric acceptors remains unclear. This study investigates the effects of fluorination and chlorination on small-molecule and polymeric acceptors, and finds that chlorinated small-molecule acceptors exhibit better performance due to their stronger intermolecular packing mode, while fluorinated polymers achieve a denser packing mode and better performance compared to chlorinated polymers.
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Ruimin Zhou, Chen Yang, Wenjun Zou, Muhammad Abdullah Adil, Huan Li, Min Lv, Ziyun Huang, Menglan Lv, Jianqi Zhang, Kun Lu, Zhixiang Wei
Summary: In this study, three small-molecule donors based on DTBDT unit were designed and synthesized, with chlorinated or/and sulfurated substitutions, along with a non-fullerene acceptor IDIC-4Cl. By combining chlorination and sulfuration strategies, energy levels, molar extinction coefficients, and crystallinities of donors can be effectively altered, with ZR1-S-Cl showing the best performance. The corresponding all-small-molecule organic solar cells achieved a high power conversion efficiency of 12.05% with IDIC-4Cl as an acceptor.
JOURNAL OF ENERGY CHEMISTRY
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Hui Chen, Tingxing Zhao, Long Li, Pu Tan, Hanjian Lai, Yulin Zhu, Xue Lai, Liang Han, Nan Zheng, Liang Guo, Feng He
Summary: By utilizing the quasiplanar heterojunction (Q-PHJ) structure, an organic solar cell (OSC) based on BTIC-BO-4Cl demonstrates high efficiency comparable to traditional bulk heterojunction (BHJ) OSCs. This study suggests that the Q-PHJ architecture is suitable for specific donors and acceptors, offering an alternative approach to photovoltaic material design and device fabrication.
ADVANCED MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Xunfan Liao, Qiannan He, Guanqing Zhou, Xinxin Xia, Peipei Zhu, Zhi Xing, Haiming Zhu, Zhaoyang Yao, Xinhui Lu, Yiwang Chen
Summary: Liquid crystal small molecules (LCSMs) have been found to play a significant role in improving the performance of organic solar cells, particularly in regulating morphology and enhancing efficiency. The addition of LCSM DFBT-TT6 can delicately control the crystallinity and phase separation of the active layers, ultimately boosting the power conversion efficiency of the solar cells.
CHEMISTRY OF MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Environmental
Zhihong Yin, Xia Guo, Yang Wang, Lei Zhu, Yuhao Chen, Qunping Fan, Jianqiu Wang, Wenyan Su, Feng Liu, Maojie Zhang, Yongfang Li
Summary: Side-chain engineering, a simple but effective molecular design strategy, is employed to modify the photoelectric properties of active layer materials for improving the performance of organic solar cells (OSCs). A functionalized small molecule acceptor BTSi-4F with bulky siloxane-terminated side-chains is designed and synthesized, showing enhanced solubility, higher LUMO level, ordered molecular packing, and improved electron mobility compared to the original Y6. Paired with a wide bandgap polymer donor PM6, OSCs based on PM6:BTSi-4F achieve a superior power conversion efficiency (PCE), open-circuit voltage (Voc) and fill factor (FF) compared to devices based on PM6:Y6. This work provides a promising molecular design strategy for developing high-performance SMAs in efficient OSCs.
CHEMICAL ENGINEERING JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Yuniu Zhang, Jiawei Zheng, Zhengyan Jiang, Xinjun He, Jinwook Kim, Luhang Xu, Minchao Qin, Xinhui Lu, Aung Ko Ko Kyaw, Wallace C. H. Choy
Summary: Researchers demonstrate a facile approach of introducing pre-located Ag nanoparticles (NPs) with optimized ligands to form high-performance transparent electrodes. This approach not only guides the growth of evaporated Ag clusters to form high-quality transparent electrodes, but also reduces mis-stacking defects of the electron transport layer and improves carrier transportation/extraction. By using this method, a semi-transparent organic solar cell achieves a remarkable power conversion efficiency of 12.80% and provides potential for practical applications.
ADVANCED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yuan Gao, Xinrong Yang, Wei Wang, Rui Sun, Jiting Cui, Yuang Fu, Kai Li, Meimei Zhang, Chao Liu, Haiming Zhu, Xinhui Lu, Jie Min
Summary: The use of combinatory blending strategy in designing efficient organic solar cells (OSCs) shows promise in increasing short-circuit current density and fill factor. This study presents a high-performance ternary all-small molecule OSC (all-SMOSCs) using a narrow-bandgap alloy acceptor and a wide-bandgap small molecule donor. By optimizing the weight ratio of the components, a champion efficiency of 18.02% is achieved, demonstrating the potential for high-performance ternary all-SMOSCs.
ADVANCED MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ziyuan Chen, Qinrong Cheng, Haiyang Chen, Yeyong Wu, Junyuan Ding, Xiaoxiao Wu, Heyi Yang, Heng Liu, Weijie Chen, Xiaohua Tang, Xinhui Lu, Yaowen Li, Yongfang Li
Summary: Flexible perovskite solar cells (pero-SCs) have the potential to complement traditional silicon SCs in portable power applications. However, their stability issues hinder practical use. A new strategy using cross-linkable monomer TA-NI as ligaments on perovskite grain boundaries is developed to improve their stability and efficiency. The resulting flexible pero-SCs show promising improvements in efficiency and stability, paving the way for industrial-scale development.
ADVANCED MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Lu Chen, Jicheng Yi, Ruijie Ma, Lu Ding, Top Archie Dela Pena, Heng Liu, Jian Chen, Cuifen Zhang, Chaoyue Zhao, Wen Lu, Qi Wei, Bin Zhao, Huawei Hu, Jiaying Wu, Zaifei Ma, Xinhui Lu, Mingjie Li, Guangye Zhang, Gang Li, He Yan
Summary: Currently, the use of benzo-dithiophene (BDT) units is dominating the development of high-efficiency organic photovoltaic devices. However, researchers have explored the use of benzo-difuran (BDF) units to diversify the choices of building blocks for donor polymers. In this study, a BDF-based polymer donor achieved the highest efficiency reported for BDF donor materials (18.4%) with the aid of a solid additive (2-chloronaphthalene), which showed significant effects in optimizing morphology and enhancing device parameters.
ADVANCED MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Han Yu, Yan Wang, Xinhui Zou, Junli Yin, Xiaoyu Shi, Yuhao Li, Heng Zhao, Lingyuan Wang, Ho Ming Ng, Bosen Zou, Xinhui Lu, Kam Sing Wong, Wei Ma, Zonglong Zhu, He Yan, Shangshang Chen
Summary: In this study, a poly(fullerene-alt-xylene) acceptor (PFBO-C12) was used as a guest component in ternary organic solar cells to achieve a significant increase in efficiency from 16.9% to 18.0%. The results showed that PFBO-C12 facilitated hole transfer and suppressed charge recombination while maintaining a favorable morphology with high crystallinity and smaller domain size. Additionally, the introduction of PFBO-C12 reduced voltage loss and improved the light stability and mechanical durability of all-polymer solar cells.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Zhaotong Qin, Minchao Qin, Xinhui Lu
Summary: In this study, a vacuum-drying strategy in the two-step method was employed to fabricate low-lead perovskite solar cells with an impressive efficiency of 19.67%. The vacuum treatment induced the formation of low crystalline Pb0.3Sn0.7I2 films containing less solvent, thereby facilitating FAI penetration and suppressing pinholes. Compared to the conventional one-step method, the two-step fabricated low-lead perovskite films with vacuum-drying treatment exhibited larger grain size, lower trap density, weaker recombination loss, resulting in better thermal stability and a record-high efficiency near 20%.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Le Mei, Xinxin Xia, Rui Sun, Yuyu Pan, Jie Min, Xinhui Lu, Alex K. -Y. Jen, Xian-Kai Chen
Summary: This study investigates the thermodynamic and dynamic impact of additives with different pi-conjugation degrees on molecular packings in Y6-based OSC films using all-atom molecular dynamics simulations. The results demonstrate that the van der Waals interactions between the Y6 end groups and the studied additives are the strongest, and the pi-conjugation degree of the additive molecules determines the strength of the interactions with Y6 molecules. Strengthening the interactions between the Y6 end groups and the additive molecules not only accelerates the formation of ordered packing of Y6 molecules, but also reduces the intermolecular distances between Y6 molecules.
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yuhao Li, Minchao Qin, Yunfan Wang, Shiang Li, Zhaotong Qin, Sai-Wing Tsang, Chun-Jen Su, Yubin Ke, Xinhui Lu
Summary: In this research, the phase transition behavior of cesium lead iodide (CsPbI3) quantum dot (QD) films under different temperature profiles was investigated using in situ scattering techniques. It was found that the phase transition from black phase to yellow phase can be induced by the instant heating-up (IHU) process, while the majority of QDs remained in the black phase under the slow heating-up (SHU) process. Further analysis revealed that the phase transition is triggered by the removal of surface ligands, which alters the energy landscape. The lattice symmetry plays a crucial role in determining the transition rate and the coexistence black-to-yellow phase ratio. Therefore, the lattice symmetry can be used as an indicator to monitor the phase transition of CsPbI3 QDs and adjust the coexistence ratio for specific applications.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Zhaotong Qin, Mike Pols, Minchao Qin, Jianquan Zhang, He Yan, Shuxia Tao, Xinhui Lu
Summary: By optimizing the crystal orientation through a regulation of the Pb/Sn ratio, we achieved a record high efficiency of 18.06% for quasi-two-dimensional (2D) Pb-Sn mixed perovskite solar cells. Increasing the Pb content can suppress the unwanted horizontal 2D phase and enhance the growth of vertical 2D phases, leading to improved device performance and stability.
ACS ENERGY LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ruijie Ma, Xinyu Jiang, Jiehao Fu, Tao Zhu, Cenqi Yan, Kexin Wu, Peter Mueller-Buschbaum, Gang Li
Summary: The morphological features and film formation processes of high-performance donor-acceptor binary photovoltaic blends using three representative solvents are investigated. It is found that the solvent used has a significant effect on the efficiency of the PM6:L8-BO system, while the PM6:eC9 system is less influenced by the solvent. The in situ and ex situ studies reveal the reasons behind the observed differences and provide insights into the optimization of organic solar cells.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Lin-Yong Xu, Yuan Gao, Wei Wang, Yiming Shao, Mingxia Chen, Xinrong Yang, Yuang Fu, Meimei Zhang, Xinhui Lu, Rui Sun, Jie Min
Summary: To realize the application of OSCs, the material cost should be reduced, and one approach is to optimize the synthetic method of the active layer materials. In this study, a convenient synthetic route of TPD acceptor unit derivatives was developed, greatly minimizing the synthetic cost of the relevant polymer donors. Two TPD-based P(D)s, PTTB-H and PTTB-F, were synthesized, and PTTB-F exhibited superior performance with promising device performance.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Top Archie Dela Pena, Ruijie Ma, Zengshan Xing, Qi Wei, Jafar I. Khan, Ryan Michael Young, Yulong Hai, Sheena Anne Garcia, Xinhui Zou, Zijing Jin, Fai Lun Ng, King Lun Yeung, Dayne F. Swearer, Michael R. Wasielewski, Jiannong Wang, Hyojung Cha, He Yan, Kam Sing Wong, Gang Li, Mingjie Li, Jiaying Wu
Summary: Efficient exciton-to-charge generation from non-fullerene acceptors has been a breakthrough in organic solar cell development. However, low device fill factors and charge recombination loss continue to limit their potential. This study uncovers the role of disorder-induced uphill bulk-to-D/A interface transport energy landscape in enhancing polaron recombination resistance and reducing triplet state formation. By increasing interface disorder and maintaining purer domains, remarkable device performance can be achieved without additional components or treatments.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jiawei Zheng, Xinjun He, Yuniu Zhang, Benzheng Lyu, Jinwook Kim, Shiang Li, Xinhui Lu, Haibin Su, Wallace C. H. Choy
Summary: Solution-processed top electrodes using metallic nanoparticles have been proposed for the large-scale industrialization of organic solar cells (OSCs). A compact-packing-enabled fabrication approach is introduced for the efficient stacking and sintering of metallic nanoparticles, leading to high conductivity and high reflectance top electrodes. The use of gallic acid-assisted silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) results in high-quality AgNP films with uniform particle size distribution and superior storage stability, enabling the achievement of a record high efficiency of 14.69% for large-area solution-processed OSCs.
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Hailin Yu, Jiayu Wang, Qiao Zhou, Jiaqiang Qin, Yinghan Wang, Xinhui Lu, Pei Cheng
Summary: Organic photovoltaics (OPVs) are considered as a promising solution to environmental problems and energy challenges. Semi-transparent OPVs (STOPVs) are one of the most possible commercialized forms of OPVs, with power conversion efficiency over 14% and average visible light transmittance over 20%. This tutorial review summarizes the device structures, operating principles, and evaluation parameters of STOPVs, proposes strategies to construct high-performance STOPVs, and discusses potential applications and challenges for the future commercialization of STOPVs.
CHEMICAL SOCIETY REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Chao Zhou, Yonglei Han, Lei Cheng, Ruijie Ma, Fei Wang, Shuchen Weng, Guicheng Yu, Fang Lin, Kang Zhou, Hanlin Hu, Xiao Liang, Yongfei Wang, Haoran Lin, Gang Li
Summary: In this work, two novel organic cations MDAN and EDAN were used to create quasi-2D DJ perovskites. The EDAN-based perovskite showed better film morphology and lower defect density, resulting in a higher power conversion efficiency.
JOURNAL OF MATERIALS CHEMISTRY A
(2023)