Abstract
ABSTRACTElectron microscopy has been used to study the degradation of organic solar cells when exposed to humid air. Devices with various different combinations of commonly used organic solar cell hole transport layers and cathode materials have been investigated. In this way the ingress of water and the effect it has on devices could be studied. It was found that calcium and aluminum in the cathode both react with water, causing voids and delamination within the device. The use of poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) was found to increase the degradation by easing water ingress into the device. Replacing these materials removed these degradation features. © 2015 The Authors. Journal of Polymer Science Part B: Polymer Physics published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2016, 54, 216–224
Highlights
It is hoped that organic materials will one day provide cheap, flexible, thin film solar cells which can be produced using non-toxic processes and materials.[1,2] such organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices still have low efficiencies compared with other competing technologies and have operational lifetime problems due to sensitivity to ultraviolet light, water, and oxygen.[3,4] Much research has been focused on increasing efficiencies, but the longevity of these devices is important and more understanding is needed of the processes involved so that degradation can be minimized.Degradation of OPV performance can be caused by a number of different factors, due to the multilayered structure and finely balanced morphology of the active layer, each of which can be negatively altered
The second part discusses those with molybdenum oxide (MoOx) as the hole transport layer
This work has shown that the material choice made in the design of organic solar cells has a large impact on the degradation of devices when exposed to humid air
Summary
It is hoped that organic materials will one day provide cheap, flexible, thin film solar cells which can be produced using non-toxic processes and materials.[1,2] such organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices still have low efficiencies compared with other competing technologies and have operational lifetime problems due to sensitivity to ultraviolet light, water, and oxygen.[3,4] Much research has been focused on increasing efficiencies, but the longevity of these devices is important and more understanding is needed of the processes involved so that degradation can be minimized. Degradation of OPV performance can be caused by a number of different factors, due to the multilayered structure and finely balanced morphology of the active layer, each of which can be negatively altered. An oxide layer that forms when aluminum is used as the top cathode has been reported.[7,10,12] The presence of the polymer poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) as the hole transport layer has been found to enhance degradation in air[10] compared with devices with alternative hole transport layers[12] or none at all.[9]
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