Review
Polymer Science
Yangjun Yan, Yajie Zhang, Waqar Ali Memon, Mengni Wang, Xinghua Zhang, Zhixiang Wei
Summary: This review provides an overview of the current understanding of entropy-driven charge separation in organic solar cells, focusing on the investigation of the entropy effect on exciton dissociation mechanism from both theoretical and experimental aspects. It explores factors such as the dimensionality of the organic semiconductor, energy disorder effect, morphology of the active layer, and the nonequilibrium effect, and discusses how they contribute to compensating the Coulomb dissociation barrier for charge transfer exciton separation and charge generation process. This review offers insights into the underlying mechanisms of exciton separation and provides pathways for enhancing the efficiency of organic solar cells.
MACROMOLECULAR RAPID COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Mariusz Wojcik, Irmina Zawieja-Bartosinska, Kazuhiko Seki
Summary: Using high-precision simulation calculations and a semianalytical theory, this study resolves the controversy over the role of energetic disorder in geminate electron-hole photoseparation in organic solids. The results show that in efficient photovoltaic systems, the probability of charge-carrier separation decreases with increasing disorder, due to energy relaxation and deepening of the electron-hole Coulomb well. In inefficient systems, the separation probability initially decreases but shows an increasing trend at large disorder. The study also highlights the impact of mismatched electron and hole mobilities on geminate charge-pair separation probability, even in homogeneous systems.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY C
(2022)
Article
Energy & Fuels
Chao Ma, Christopher C. S. Chan, Xinhui Zou, Han Yu, Jianquan Zhang, He Yan, Kam Sing Wong, Philip C. Y. Chow
Summary: Organic solar cells based on nonfullerene acceptor molecules exhibit high charge generation rates, with exciton dissociation at the D/A interface taking approximately 100 ps to complete. The charge transfer state separation into free electrons and holes at room temperature shows a similar timescale, but the free charge generation rate and yield are significantly reduced at low temperatures.
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Zhiyong Liu
Summary: Ternary organic photovoltaics with a blend of two similar chemical structure polymers as the donor achieved a higher power conversion efficiency by broadening the light spectrum and optimizing the phase separation and crystallinity. The enhanced performance can be attributed to the combination of cascade LUMO levels, improved exciton dissociation, and efficient charge transport within the ternary films.
ORGANIC ELECTRONICS
(2021)
Article
Materials Science, Ceramics
Hafeez Yusuf Hafeez, J. Mohammed, Chifu Ebenezer Ndikilar, Abdussalam Balarabe Suleiman, Rabia Salihu Sa'id, Ibrahim Muhammad
Summary: In this study, a rGO/NiFe2O4-g-C3N4 (RNC-3) hybrid heterostructure photocatalyst was fabricated for efficient charge carrier transfer and high solar fuel (H2) generation. The optimized co-catalysts loadings were determined to be 15 wt% NiFe2O4 and 3 wt% rGO. The results showed that RNC-3 exhibited an improved photocatalytic performance with H2 generation activity of 11,817 mu molg-1h-1, approximately 4 and 76 times higher than NiFe2O4-g-C3N4 and g-C3N4 nanosheets, respectively. Additionally, RNC-3 demonstrated convenient magnetic recovery, practical reusability, and high activity, making it a potential visible-light responsive photocatalyst for efficient water-splitting applications.
CERAMICS INTERNATIONAL
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Applied
Zhiyong Liu, Hongen Wang
Summary: In this study, a ternary polymer solar cell was fabricated using two well-compatible donors and one acceptor, achieving a higher power conversion efficiency. The use of two donors with similar HOMO energy levels and cascade LUMO energy levels is an efficient method to improve the performance of PSCs.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Abdul Rashid Umar, Austin L. Dorris, Naresh M. Kotadiya, Noel C. Giebink, Graham S. Collier, Christopher Grieco
Summary: Conjugated polymers (CPs) are a unique class of materials that can be easily doped to produce mobile charge carriers, but their interplay with the local environment and polaronic properties is not well-understood. In this study, transient absorption spectroscopy was used to investigate the photoexcited polarons in a lightly doped ProDOT-co-EDOT polymer film, revealing a Stark effect that is sensitive to their local environments. The resulting electroabsorption signal indicates that polaron excitations spatially separate the hole from its counterion within 200 fs. The photoinduced Stark effect in transient absorption experiments can serve as a sensitive probe of the local environment of polarons in doped CPs and refine electronic structure models describing their polaronic states and transitions.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY C
(2023)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Hong-En Wang, Zhiyong Liu
Summary: In this study, a fullerene derivative NC(70)BA was used as a guest acceptor and introduced into PM7:Y6 binary films to fabricate ternary organic solar cells. The optimized ternary films achieved a high power conversion efficiency and improved the properties of the photoactive layer.
ORGANIC ELECTRONICS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Jing-Yuan Fan, Zhi-Xi Liu, Jack Rao, Kangrong Yan, Zeng Chen, Yixin Ran, Buyi Yan, Jizhong Yao, Guanghao Lu, Haiming Zhu, Chang-Zhi Li, Hongzheng Chen
Summary: This study develops high-performance organic solar modules using a bilayer-merged-annealing-assisted blade-coating strategy and addresses challenges in large-scale module construction.
ADVANCED MATERIALS
(2022)
Review
Chemistry, Physical
Shafket Rasool, Jiwoo Yeop, Na Gyeong An, Jae Won Kim, Jin Young Kim
Summary: Significant research has been conducted to understand the photo-physics of organic solar cells (OSCs) in order to improve their efficiency and stability. The invention of non-fullerene acceptors has revolutionized the understanding of OSCs, but there is a scarcity of research on air-processed OSCs. This review focuses on comparing the charge carrier dynamics of glovebox (GB) processed OSCs with air-processed (AP) OSCs and presents key requirements for efficient AP-OSCs.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Prabodh Dhakal, Thomas Ferron, Awwad Alotaibi, Victor Murcia, Obaid Alqahtani, Brian A. Collins
Summary: The study reveals a causal relationship between mixed donor-acceptor interfaces and charge generation in polymer-fullerene solar cells, demonstrating the significant impact of mixed phases on organic photovoltaic performance compared to pure aggregated domains at the interface. The analysis eliminates alternative explanations for performance trends, establishing causality and highlighting the importance of sharp interfaces for realizing theoretical efficiency limits in organic photovoltaics.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Zhiyong Liu, Hong-En Wang
Summary: A ternary heterojunction strategy using PBDB-T-2F, IT-4F, and NC(70)BA as donor, acceptor, and third component, respectively, leads to improved photovoltaic performance in polymer solar cells. The introduction of NC(70)BA optimizes light absorption and exciton dissociation, resulting in a highest power conversion efficiency of 13.90% in an optimized ratio. This ternary strategy shows promise for developing highly efficient ternary PSCs.
ACS APPLIED ENERGY MATERIALS
(2021)
Article
Physics, Applied
Maomao Zhang, Qiuxia Lu, Xiaojing Liu, Kun Gao, Zhong An
Summary: This study investigates the effect of an infrared push pulse on the relaxed exciton in conjugated polymers and demonstrates the favorable delocalization effect of hot exciton for charge generation. The results suggest that the driving field required for the dissociation of hot exciton is significantly reduced compared to relaxed exciton. The influence of photoexcitation conditions on charge generation is discussed.
APPLIED PHYSICS LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Nejc Nagelj, Alexandra Brumberg, Shoshanna Peifer, Richard D. Schaller, Jacob H. Olshansky
Summary: This study introduces a method to control the thermodynamic driving force for photoexcited charge transfer in quantum dots (QDs) and investigates the electron transfer rates using functionalized QDs. The findings contribute to optimizing charge transfer systems by maximizing the electron transfer rate while minimizing energetic losses.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY LETTERS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Hae Yeon Chung, Jung-Hwa Park, Junjie Cui, Su-Yeon Kim, Juwon Oh, Dongho Kim, Soo Young Park
Summary: This study focused on the importance of excess energy in charge separation mechanism in polymer solar cells (PSCs), investigating the dissociation of Coulombically bound electron and hole pairs at the donor and acceptor interface. The results showed that understanding the effect of ICT characteristics and delocalization of exciton states of polymers is crucial for enhancing charge separation at D/A interface and increasing photocurrent in PSCs. The findings also highlighted the dominant charge separation mechanism in PTB7:NIDCSEO3 and the complex charge generation mechanism in P3HT:NIDCSEO3 blends.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY C
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Huiyun Jiang, Yameng Ren, Weiwei Zhang, Yongzhen Wu, Etienne Christophe Socie, Brian Irving Carlsen, Jacques-E Moser, He Tian, Shaik Mohammed Zakeeruddin, Wei-Hong Zhu, Michael Graetzel
ANGEWANDTE CHEMIE-INTERNATIONAL EDITION
(2020)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Yasemin Saygili, Marko Stojanovic, Hui-Seon Kim, Joel Teuscher, Rosario Scopelliti, Marina Freitag, Shaik M. Zakeeruddin, Jacques-E Moser, Michael Graetzel, Anders Hagfeldt
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY C
(2020)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Claudia E. Avalos, Sabine Richert, Etienne Socie, Ganesan Karthikeyan, Gilles Casano, Gabriele Stevanato, Dominik J. Kubicki, Jacques E. Moser, Christiane R. Timmel, Moreno Lelli, Aaron J. Rossini, Olivier Ouari, Lyndon Emsley
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY A
(2020)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Yameng Ren, Natalie Flores-Diaz, Dan Zhang, Yiming Cao, Jean-David Decoppet, George Cameron Fish, Jacques-E. Moser, Shaik Mohammed Zakeeruddin, Peng Wang, Anders Hagfeldt, Michael Graetzel
ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS
(2020)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Andres Burgos-Caminal, Etienne Socie, Marine E. F. Bouduban, Jacques-E Moser
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY LETTERS
(2020)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Andres Burgos-Caminal, Juan Manuel Moreno-Naranjo, Aurelien Rene Willauer, Arun Aby Paraecattil, Ahmad Ajdarzadeh, Jacques-E Moser
Summary: The mechanisms behind the large photocarrier diffusion length and outstanding photovoltaic performances of lead halide perovskites (LHP) are still debated, with research showing a competition between carrier cooling and dynamic screening during the charge separation process. Measurements using ultrabroadband terahertz spectroscopy reveal early carrier mobility dynamics and a chemical composition dependence of the dynamic screening lifetime.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY C
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Brener R. C. Vale, Etienne Socie, Leticia R. C. Cunha, Andre F. Fonseca, Roberto Vaz, Jefferson Bettini, Jacques-E Moser, Marco A. Schiavon
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY C
(2020)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Dan Zhang, Marko Stojanovic, Yameng Ren, Yiming Cao, Felix T. Eickemeyer, Etienne Socie, Nick Vlachopoulos, Jacques-E. Moser, Shaik M. Zakeeruddin, Anders Hagfeldt, Michael Gratzel
Summary: Developing photosensitizers with high open-circuit voltage (V-oc) is important to improve the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of co-sensitized solar cells. By employing a carefully tailored organic sensitizer MS5 with copper electrolyte, the authors achieved a V-oc of 1.24V and recorded a PCE of 34.5% under ambient light.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Etienne Socie, Brener R. C. Vale, Aaron T. Terpstra, Marco A. Schiavon, Jacques-E Moser
Summary: The study investigated early exciton dynamics in strongly confined all-inorganic cesium lead halide perovskite nanocrystals, revealing the formation and relaxation process of emitting band-edge states and confined hole states. Increasing pump excitation intensity led to longer band-edge population lifetime due to confined hole state filling.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY C
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Algirdas Ducinskas, George C. Fish, Michael A. Hope, Lena Merten, Davide Moia, Alexander Hinderhofer, Loie C. Carbone, Jacques-Edouard Moser, Frank Schreiber, Joachim Maier, Jovana Milic, Michael Graetzel
Summary: Layered hybrid perovskites based on Dion Jacobson phases incorporating various anchoring alkylammonium groups and halides were systematically studied, revealing that longer alkyl chains facilitate the formation of well-defined layered structures, thereby impacting the optical properties and environmental stability of the materials.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY LETTERS
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
Simon Nussbaum, Etienne Socie, Liang Yao, Jun-Ho Yum, Jacques-E Moser, Kevin Sivula
Summary: This study reports the preparation and incorporation of asymmetric naphthalenediimide (NDI) spacer chromophore cations with different amine-bearing alkyl linker chains into thin films of layered hybrid organic-inorganic perovskite (LHOIP) materials. In situ UV-vis spectroscopic kinetic studies reveal that shorter linker chain lengths require higher annealing temperatures to form the LHOIP structure. Avrami analysis of the layered perovskite formation demonstrates an evolution from three-dimensional to quasi-two-dimensional crystal growth with increasing linker chain length.
CHEMISTRY OF MATERIALS
(2022)
Article
Chemistry, Physical
George C. Fish, Aaron T. Terpstra, Algirdas Ducinskas, Masaud Almalki, Loi C. Carbone, Lukas Pfeifer, Michael Gratzel, Jacques-E. Moser, Jovana V. Milic
Summary: Organic materials can modify the optical properties of layered (2D) hybrid perovskites, and their effects on photophysics are often overlooked. In this study, the impact of spacer size and perovskite phase configuration on charge transfer excitons in 2D perovskites is investigated using transient absorption spectroscopy and electroabsorption spectroscopy. It is found that charge transfer excitons form in the Dion-Jacobson (DJ) phase, leading to a photoinduced Stark effect dependent on the spacer size. Moreover, temperature-dependent measurements reveal new features in the transient spectra of the Ruddlesden-Popper (RP) phase at low temperatures due to the quantum-confined Stark effect.
JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY LETTERS
(2023)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Simon Nussbaum, Etienne Socie, George C. Fish, Nicolas J. Diercks, Hannes Hempel, Dennis Friedrich, Jacques-E. Moser, Jun-Ho Yum, Kevin Sivula
Summary: Incorporating organic semiconducting spacer cations into layered lead halide perovskite structures can mitigate dielectric and quantum confinement effects by inducing charge-transfer between the organic and inorganic layers. This study reports the synthesis and characterization of novel DJ-phase organic-inorganic layered perovskite semiconductors with a naphthalene diimide (NDI) based spacer cation that can accept photogenerated electrons from the inorganic layer. The NDI-based thin film with a 6-carbon alkyl chain length exhibited high electron mobility and trap passivation by the NDI spacer cation.
Article
Chemistry, Physical
George C. Fish, Juan Manuel Moreno-Naranjo, Andreas Billion, Daniel Kratzert, Erwin Hack, Ingo Krossing, Frank Nuesch, Jacques-E Moser
Summary: The study demonstrates that a decrease in H-aggregation in organic salt semiconductors leads to reduced charge transfer, however, carrier mobility remains largely unchanged as a decrease in energetic disorder helps alleviate trapping of charges by H-aggregates.
PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY CHEMICAL PHYSICS
(2021)
Article
Materials Science, Multidisciplinary
Etienne Socie, Brener R. C. Vale, Andres Burgos-Caminal, Jacques-E. Moser
Summary: Lead halide perovskites show potential for light-emitting devices, with reduced-dimensional perovskite materials exhibiting enhanced photoluminescence due to large exciton binding energy. However, nanocrystals with smaller sizes may have increased surface defects, leading to faster photoluminescence decay. A study on quasi-1D CsPbBr3 perovskite nanoplatelets discovered fast photoluminescence decay and proposed a model to confirm shallow traps, as well as revealed the presence of deep trap states in aged nanoplatelets.
ADVANCED OPTICAL MATERIALS
(2021)
