Article
Energy & Fuels
Dor Gotleyb, Rafi Shikler
Summary: In recent years, the efficiency of organic solar cells has been rapidly increasing, with lab-scale devices reaching 17% efficiency, while large-area devices are still behind at 12%. By adding a metal grid to the transparent electrode, conductivity can be improved to reduce power loss. Research shows that optimizing the number and positioning of grid lines can further boost large-area cell efficiency and bridge the gap between large-area and lab-scale devices.
SOLAR ENERGY MATERIALS AND SOLAR CELLS
(2021)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Austin M. Kay, Maura E. Fitzsimons, Gregory Burwell, Paul Meredith, Ardalan Armin, Oskar J. Sandberg
Summary: Organic semiconductors have tailorable optical properties, making them promising materials for indoor photovoltaics (IPVs) to power Internet-of-Things devices sustainably in the future. However, the excitonic and energetically disordered nature of organic semiconductors results in considerable sub-gap absorption and non-radiative losses in solar cells. This work explores how energetic disorder, sub-optical gap absorption, and non-radiative recombination limit the performance of organic semiconductor-based IPVs, providing realistic upper estimates for power conversion efficiency. Additionally, a methodology for predicting IPV performance under arbitrary illumination conditions is described.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Ming Sun, Kang-Ning Zhang, Jia-Wei Qiao, Ling-Hua Wang, Min Li, Peng Lu, Wei Qin, Zuo Xiao, Lixiu Zhang, Xiao-Tao Hao, Liming Ding, Xiao-Yan Du
Summary: The study reveals that molecular side-chain engineering can effectively suppress the disordered preaggregation in the liquid state during environmentally friendly printing process, leading to enhanced crystallization, improved device performance, and potential for large-scale production of organic solar cells.
ADVANCED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Engineering, Multidisciplinary
Nasser Sadoogi, Ali Rostami, Behdad Faridpak, Meisam Farrokhifar
Summary: This study investigates the impact of mobility and active layer thickness on the properties of bulk heterojunction solar cells using the drift-diffusion model. It reveals that open circuit voltage and power conversion efficiency are affected by two loss mechanisms, as well as the uneven absorption of light and distribution of photogenerated excitons in the active layer. The study suggests that simultaneous increase in mobility and thickness can significantly enhance the efficiency of bulk heterojunction solar cells.
ENGINEERING SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY-AN INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL-JESTECH
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Xuenan Zhao, Honggang Gu, Linya Chen, Shiyuan Liu
Summary: Embedding nanostructures in organic solar cells is a known method to improve absorption efficiency without increasing thickness, but it requires advanced optical analysis. In this paper, a generalized rigorous coupled-wave analysis method is proposed to optimize the performance of organic solar cells with nanostructures. The method reduces simulation times by at least half compared to conventional methods while maintaining accuracy, demonstrating practical improvement in device performance.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Tammie Nelson, Patricia L. Huestis, Virginia W. Manner
Summary: This study investigates the photolytic degradation of dodecane substituted with various energetic functional groups. The results show that excitons are localized on the energetic functional group, leading to the predominant degradation of the group. The relative trends in degradation are consistent with the stability of the energetic functional groups to thermal and sub-shock degradation, except for the azide functional group which requires further exploration.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY A
(2022)
Article
Agricultural Engineering
Badr Ouhammou, Azeddine Frimane, Aggour Mohammed, Abdelmajid Jamil, Tarik Kousksou, Fatima Zohra Gargab
Summary: This paper presents a novel thermodynamic modeling approach for a solar biomass system, focusing on bio-methane energy production and wastewater treatment. The proposed mathematical schemes were validated through experiments using a pilot reactor, and the results showed good agreement. The modeling packages developed in this study have practical implications for industrial applications.
BIOMASS & BIOENERGY
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Moritz Riede, Donato Spoltore, Karl Leo
Summary: Organic solar cells have the potential to be the cheapest form of electricity, surpassing silicon photovoltaics. However, challenges remain in increasing efficiency and long-term stability. The technology could be used in building integrated photovoltaics and portable electronics, with the potential to have the lowest carbon footprint of all energy generation technologies.
ADVANCED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Eri Widianto, Yuliar Firdaus, Shobih, Lia Muliani Pranoto, Kuwat Triyana, Iman Santoso, Natalita Maulani Nursam
Summary: This study explores the application of two-dimensional materials as hole transport layers in non-fullerene acceptor-based organic photovoltaics. Device simulation reveals the impact of thickness and defect density on the device performance. Optimization leads to high power conversion efficiencies.
Review
Chemistry, Physical
Qiuju Liang, Wangchang Li, Haodong Lu, Zhenhao Yu, Xinyi Zhang, Qingjie Dong, Chunpeng Song, Zongcheng Miao, Jiangang Liu
Summary: BHJ organic photovoltaics are highly promising for green energy technology, but optimizing the morphology of the active layer is crucial. The addition of solid additives has become a popular strategy, but the relationship between additive properties and active layer morphology is still unclear.
ACS APPLIED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Polymer Science
Muhammad Raheel Khan, Bozena Jarzabek
Summary: This study utilized numerical simulations to investigate the performance of an organic thin-film solar cell, finding that the thickness of the active layer significantly impacts efficiency, while temperature and defect density also affect efficiency. Additionally, the application of a reflective coating and doping of HTL and ETL were shown to positively influence the efficiency of this type of solar cells.
Article
Energy & Fuels
Natalia Borzdun, Ruslan R. Ramazanov, Artyom D. Glova, Sergey Larin, Sergey Lyulin
Summary: Chemically modified asphaltenes are proposed as low-cost acceptor materials for BHJ solar cells. DFT calculations and MD simulations show that carboxyl-containing asphaltenes can fine-tune energy levels and form heterophase morphology, making them a potential option for efficient charge transfer.
Article
Spectroscopy
Jillella Gopala Krishna, Kunal Roy
Summary: The study presents robust QSPR models developed for five chemical classes of organic dyes (Triphenylamines, Phenothiazines, Indolines, Porphyrins and Coumarins) to predict absorption maxima values. These models were internally and externally validated, and consensus predictions were made for dye categories using an intelligent consensus predictor tool.
SPECTROCHIMICA ACTA PART A-MOLECULAR AND BIOMOLECULAR SPECTROSCOPY
(2022)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Emilie Dauzon, Xavier Sallenave, Cedric Plesse, Fabrice Goubard, Aram Amassian, Thomas D. Anthopoulos
Summary: Emerging forms of soft, flexible, and stretchable electronics have the potential to revolutionize the future electronics industry, with stretchable photovoltaics as self-powering systems showing great promise for various applications. Current research is focused on achieving wearability and stretchability in electronic systems, utilizing both extrinsic and intrinsic approaches for inducing stretchability.
ADVANCED MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Emma L. K. Spooner, Elena J. Cassella, Joel A. Smith, Thomas E. Catley, Sam Burholt, David G. Lidzey
Summary: The introduction of Y-series non-fullerene acceptors has greatly improved the power conversion efficiencies of organic solar cells. This study demonstrates, for the first time, the deposition of a Y-series-based system using ultrasonic spray coating, which has the potential for significantly faster deposition speeds than traditional methods. The use of an air-knife enables rapid removal of the casting solvent and overcomes film reticulation, resulting in spray-coated PM6:DTY6 devices with PCEs of up to 14.1%. The study also highlights the challenges of scalable coating for Y-series-based solar cells, particularly the influence of slower drying times on blend morphology and crystallinity. The compatibility of ultrasonic spray coating with high-speed roll-to-roll OSC manufacturing techniques is demonstrated.
ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Daniele Barettin, Igor V. Shtrom, Rodion R. Reznik, Sergey V. Mikushev, George E. Cirlin, Matthias Auf der Maur, Nika Akopian
Summary: We conducted a study on Wurtzite AlGaAs using both experimental and numerical methods, and found that it is a technologically promising yet unexplored material. By developing a complete numerical model based on an 8-band (k) over right arrow center dot(p) over right arrow method, including electromechanical fields, we calculated the optoelectronic properties of wurtzite AlGaAs nanowires with different Al content and compared them with experimental data. Our results strongly indicate that wurtzite AlGaAs is a direct band gap material. Additionally, we numerically obtained the band gap of wurtzite AlAs and the valence band offset between AlAs and GaAs in the wurtzite symmetry.
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Maurizio Stefanelli, Luigi Vesce, Aldo Di Carlo
Summary: Perovskite solar cells and modules are driving the energy revolution in the photovoltaic field. Low-cost carbon-based materials as counter electrodes in carbon-based perovskite solar cells and modules make them suitable for large-scale manufacturing processes. In this study, we present the upscaling routes of carbon-counter-electrode-based module devices to promote research in this green and sustainable direction.
Article
Crystallography
Nicolo Lago, Andrea Polo, Sathy Harshavardhan Reddy, Aldo Di Carlo, Andrea Cester
Summary: This study investigates the intrinsic instability of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) by focusing on the role of the hole-blocking layer (HBL). It is found that PSCs fabricated with SnOX exhibit larger instabilities mainly due to fluctuations in the open-circuit voltage, while those fabricated with BCP are more stable with a marginal increase in power conversion efficiency attributed to an increase in the short-circuit current.
Article
Physics, Applied
M. Ries, E. Poliani, F. Nippert, D. Seidlitz, L. T. H. Greif, I. Koslow, J. Blaesing, M. Auf der Maur, A. Hoffmann, N. Esser, M. R. Wagner
Summary: In this study, the electronic and optical properties of InGaN single quantum wells with thin GaN cap-layers were investigated. A significant spectral shift of quantum well emission was observed for cap-layer thicknesses between 1 and 10 nm. The origin of this shift was explained by calculations and the influence of alloy fluctuations and homogeneity was studied on both the microscale and nanoscale using UV micro-Raman scattering and TERS. The results demonstrated the capabilities of TERS to resolve nanoscale thickness fluctuations and compositional inhomogeneities in ultra-thin semiconductor layers.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYSICS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Daniele Barettin, Alexei V. Sakharov, Andrey F. Tsatsulnikov, Andrey E. Nikolaev, Alessandro Pecchia, Matthias Auf Der Maur, Sergey Yu. Karpov, Nikolay Cherkashin
Summary: This article investigates a possible solution for high-efficiency visible light-emitting diodes (LEDs) using InGaN-quantum-dot-based active regions. Numerical simulations are conducted on a single InGaN island with a size of ten nanometers and nonuniform indium content distribution, which is restored from an experimental image. Various two- and three-dimensional models of the quantum dot are derived, and different calculations and predictions are performed. The impact of InGaN composition fluctuations on the ground-state electron and hole wave functions and quantum dot emission spectrum is analyzed in detail. The applicability of various simulation approaches is assessed by comparing the predicted spectrum with the experimental one.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Ilenia Viola, Fabio Matteocci, Luisa De Marco, Leonardo Lo Presti, Silvia Rizzato, Simona Sennato, Alessandra Zizzari, Valentina Arima, Antonio De Santis, Chiara Rovelli, Silvio Morganti, Matthias Auf Der Maur, Marianna Testa
Summary: Organometal halide perovskites (OMHP) are promising materials for fast, sensitive, and large area photodetectors. In this study, a controlled growth of OMHP single crystals in the form of microwires directly on conductive patterned substrates was achieved using a microfluidics-assisted technique. The resulting vertical devices with a pixelated sensor layer exhibit gain, a responsivity up to 200 AW(-1), and a fast rise time down to 35 µs. This is the first demonstration of an OMHP vertical device on a patterned substrate using microfluidics-assisted techniques.
ADVANCED MATERIALS TECHNOLOGIES
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Valeria Milotti, Stefania Cacovich, Davide Raffaele Ceratti, Daniel Ory, Jessica Barichello, Fabio Matteocci, Aldo Di Carlo, Polina M. Sheverdyaeva, Philip Schulz, Paolo Moras
Summary: This study tracks the evolution of the chemical and optoelectronic properties of FAPbBr(3) films under soft X-ray irradiation using photoemission spectroscopy and micro-photoluminescence. Two contrasting processes are observed during irradiation: material degradation and self-healing. The degradation is characterized by the formation of Pb-0 metallic clusters, loss of gaseous Br-2, and decrease and shift of the photoluminescence emission. The recovery of the photoluminescence signal is attributed to self-healing through the re-oxidation of Pb-0 and migration of FA(+) and Br- ions. This degradation/self-healing effect has the potential to extend the lifetime of perovskite-based X-ray detectors.
Article
Energy & Fuels
Nabarun Saha, Giuseppe Brunetti, Mario N. N. Armenise, Aldo Di Carlo, Caterina Ciminelli
Summary: Perovskite-based solar cells have shown great potential in developing renewable energy sources. Graphene as an electron transport layer can improve charge collection and sustainability of perovskite cells. Numerical investigation suggests that incorporating graphene-TiO2 nano-composite in the electron transport layer can significantly enhance power conversion efficiency, with an optimum graphene concentration of around 1%.
IEEE JOURNAL OF PHOTOVOLTAICS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Erica Magliano, Paolo Mariani, Antonio Agresti, Sara Pescetelli, Fabio Matteocci, Babak Taheri, Antonio Cricenti, Marco Luce, Aldo Di Carlo
Summary: This study developed an indium tin oxide (ITO) deposition process that effectively suppresses sputtering damage by using a transition metal oxides (TMOs)-based buffer layer. The research found that an ultrathin layer of evaporated vanadium oxide or molybdenum oxide can protect against sputtering damage in ST-PSCs for tandem applications and thin perovskite-based devices for building-integrated photovoltaics.
ACS APPLIED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Maximilian Ries, Felix Nippert, Benjamin Maerz, Manuel Alonso-Orts, Tim Grieb, Rudolfo Hoetzel, Pascal Hille, Pouria Emtenani, Eser Metin Akinoglu, Eugen Speiser, Julian Plaickner, Jorg Schoermann, Matthias Auf Der Maur, Knut Mueller-Caspary, Andreas Rosenauer, Norbert Esser, Martin Eickhoff, Markus R. Wagner
Summary: The emission properties of InGaN/GaN nanowires grown by plasma-assisted molecular beam epitaxy are investigated using various techniques, revealing the roles of inhomogeneous In distribution and radial fields in the emission properties. The radial built-in fields are found to be modest, while variations in the local In content have a greater impact. Two luminescence bands with large positive and moderate negative polarization ratios were observed, associated with In-rich inclusions and spontaneously formed superlattices in the nanowires.
Article
Nanoscience & Nanotechnology
Manuel Alonso-Orts, Rudolfo Hoetzel, Tim Grieb, Matthias Auf Der Maur, Maximilian Ries, Felix Nippert, Benjamin Maerz, Knut Mueller-Caspary, Markus R. R. Wagner, Andreas Rosenauer, Martin Eickhoff
Summary: The influence of self-assembled short-period superlattices (SPSLs) on the structural and optical properties of InGaN/GaN nanowires (NWs) grown by PAMBE on Si (111) was studied. SPSLs were found to self-assemble during growth in most of the studied nanostructures, demonstrating a short-range ordering of In-rich and In-poor InxGa1-xN regions. The polarized photoluminescence analysis revealed that the NWs exhibited parallel polarized red-yellow emission and perpendicular polarized blue emission, attributed to different In-rich regions.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Jie Xu, Sathy Harshavardhan Reddy, Luigi Angelo Castriotta, Suresh Kumar Podapangi, Marco Luce, Antonio Cricenti, Aldo Di Carlo, Thomas M. Brown
Summary: The indoor photovoltaic performance of triple-cation n-i-p perovskite solar cells was significantly improved by EuCl3 doping, especially under low light levels. EuCl3 doping reduced volatile iodine species and unreacted residual PbI2, resulting in larger perovskite grains, more uniform films, and fewer defects. As a result, the indoor power conversion efficiency increased.
SUSTAINABLE ENERGY & FUELS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Farshad Jafarzadeh, Luigi Angelo Castriotta, Francesca De Rossi, Jazib Ali, Francesco Di Giacomo, Aldo Di Carlo, Fabio Matteocci, Francesca Brunetti
Summary: This paper introduces sustainable flexible perovskite solar modules (flex-PSMs) where all layers are blade coated in ambient air without toxic solvents. By additive engineering, morphology was improved, voids in the perovskite layer were limited, and efficiency of 14% was achieved. Scalability of the process was demonstrated with the manufacturing of 94 cm(2) modules.
SUSTAINABLE ENERGY & FUELS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Sahar Majidi-Nezhad, Negin Sabahi, Hashem Shahroosvand, Narges Yaghoobi Nia, Aldo Di Carlo
Summary: Researchers have developed a dopant-free hole-transporting material (HTM) for efficient perovskite solar cells (PSCs). The new HTM, based on imidazole phenanthrene derivatives, is cost-effective and exhibits higher power conversion efficiency and light stability compared to benchmark materials. This breakthrough in engineering additive-free PSCs could lead to low-cost and high-stability solar cells.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Giuseppe Ammirati, Daniele Catone, Patrick O'Keeffe, Francesco Toschi, Stefano Turchini, Fabio Matteocci, Jessica Barichello, Aldo Di Carlo, Faustino Martelli
Summary: In this study, radiative recombination from an electron-hole liquid in FAPbBr3 thin films was observed. It was found that additional signals of electron-hole plasma and electron-hole liquid recombination bands emerged as the excitation intensity increased.
