Abstract
The fabrication of organic photovoltaic modules via printing techniques has been the greatest challenge for their commercial manufacture. Current module architecture, which is based on a monolithic geometry consisting of serially interconnecting stripe-patterned subcells with finite widths, requires highly sophisticated patterning processes that significantly increase the complexity of printing production lines and cause serious reductions in module efficiency due to so-called aperture loss in series connection regions. Herein we demonstrate an innovative module structure that can simultaneously reduce both patterning processes and aperture loss. By using a charge recombination feature that occurs at contacts between electron- and hole-transport layers, we devise a series connection method that facilitates module fabrication without patterning the charge transport layers. With the successive deposition of component layers using slot-die and doctor-blade printing techniques, we achieve a high module efficiency reaching 7.5% with area of 4.15 cm2.
Highlights
The fabrication of organic photovoltaic modules via printing techniques has been the greatest challenge for their commercial manufacture
The impressive progress made in the past two decades has led to considerable improvements in both the efficiency and operational stability of organic solar cells (OSCs), the fabrication of large-area printed modules still suffers from significantly reduced power conversion efficiencies (PCEs), amounting to less than half the efficiencies of small-sized laboratory cells
The current module architecture possesses an inherent weakness with regard to area loss, so-called aperture loss, which is well known to be a major contributor to the drastic performance degradation observed in large-area printed OSC modules[6,7,8]
Summary
The fabrication of organic photovoltaic modules via printing techniques has been the greatest challenge for their commercial manufacture. We demonstrate a new module architecture for manufacturing large-area printed OSC modules without the aid of additional and complicated post-patterning processing. By introducing an innovative series connection concept based on the charge recombination characteristic that occurs at the contacts between charge transport layers (CTLs), we design a monolithic interconnection that enables facile and efficient module fabrication without patterning the CTLs and producing the considerable aperture loss.
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