Surface-Modified Titania Nanoparticles with Conjugated Polymer for Hybrid Photovoltaic Devices

A novel route is presented for preparation of poly(1-methoxy-4-(2-ethylhexyloxy)-p-phenylenevinylene) (MEH-PPV)-functionalized TiO(2) nanoparticles (NPs), resulting in a hybrid nanocomposite (MEH-PPV similar to TiO(2) NPs). Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was used to evaluate the exact content of TiO(2) nanoparticles in the MEH-PPV similar to TiO(2) nanocomposites. Fourier-transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and photophysical properties showed that the conjugated polymer chains intimately contact with the inorganic semiconductors. The performance of photovoltaic devices based on the MEH-PPV similar to TiO(2) NPs nanocomposite was investigated by current-voltage (J-V) characteristics and intensity-modulated photovoltage spectroscopy (IMVS). Device performance was greatly improved by direct application of MEH-PPV similar to TiO(2) NPs nanocomposites as the active layer as compared with devices with simply blended counterparts (MEH-PPV/TiO(2) NPs). In addition, IMVS revealed that the longer electron lifetime was accompanied by higher open-circuit voltage in the MEH-PPV similar to TiO(2) NPs devices.