Hybrid Polymer Solar Cells Research Articles

Preparation of TiO2 Branched Nanorod Array to Improve the Performance of Polymer Hybrid Solar Cell

Preparation of TiO2 Branched Nanorod Array to Improve the Performance of Polymer Hybrid Solar Cell

Core-shell nanocomposite of superparamagnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles with poly(m-aminobenzenesulfonic acid) for polymer solar cells

Abstract Superparamagnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles play a significant role in enhancing the performance and efficiency of polymer-based solar cells using nanocomposites. For the first time in this study, a novel superparamagnetic core-shell nanocomposite of poly(m-aminobenzenesulfonic acid) (PABS) and Fe3O4 was synthesized by in-situ polymerization of m-ABS as a monomer in the presence of FeCl3·6H2O as oxidant under solid-state conditions. The poly(m-aminobenzenesulfonic acid) (PABS)-Fe3O4 nanocomposite (NCPABS-Fe3O4) was characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) that revealed a core-shell morphology. Under simulated solar irradiation, the photovoltaic cell characteristics were measured. Based on our results, the polymer-hybrid solar cell was fabricated using FTO/TiO2/NCPABS-Fe3O4/Al and demonstrated a power conversion efficiency (PCE or η) 4.24% that was approximately 660% higher than those obtained from FTO/TiO2/(PABS)/Al. We have also proposed a new mechanism for the 660% enhanced efficiency. To the best of our knowledge, this is the highest enhancement reported in the literature. Our results showed that the polymer-hybrid solar cell was completely efficient with a high η in comparison with similar ones reported in literature, and also had less fabrication costs using green synthesis conditions with a simple structure and displayed resistance to oxidation with high stability.

Self‐powered polymer–metal oxide hybrid solar cell for non‐enzymatic potentiometric sensing of bilirubin

AbstractBiofuel cell and enzyme‐based self‐powered sensors (SPS) have been reported for various metabolite sensing. However, it is essential to eliminate enzymes to reduce the cost and long‐term stability of the SPS. Here, we developed polymer (polyaniline–polyvinyl alcohol) and metal oxide (aluminium‐doped zinc oxide) hybrid solar cell self‐powered potentiometric sensor for bilirubin (BR) quantification accurately in blood. The hybrid solar device showed an open circuit potential (OCP) of 0.427 V and increases to 0.8 V upon visible light irradiation and interaction with bilirubin. The sensor shows dynamic range from 3 µg/dl to 87 mg/dl (0.05 µM–1.5 mM) with r2 0.9981 with detection limit of 1.2 ± 0.06 µg/dl. Data reading was achieved by connecting a simple multimeter without using any other active electronic components. Blood bilirubin from the jaundice patients is quantified and compared with the biochemical assay.

Formation and characterization of one-dimensional ZnS nanowires for ZnS/P3HT hybrid polymer solar cells with improved efficiency

Photovoltaic performance of hybrid devices consisting of zinc sulphide (ZnS) one-dimensional (1D) nanowires and P3HT polymer was studied. As we previously reported, hybrid solar cell architecture based on ZnS, where open circuit voltage reaches high value, deserves special attention. In this work, compared to our previous research, zero-dimensional (0D) ZnS nanoparticles were replaced by one-dimensional (1D) ZnS nanowires synthesized simply with a hot injection method. In order to improve the charge transport in hybrid solar cells, additionally, the initial ligand of octadecylamine (ODA) was partially replaced by the o-phenylenediamine. The as-synthesized products were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), UV–vis spectroscopy, photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy, energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. The performance of the devices significantly depended on the concentration of one-dimensional ZnS nanowires incorporated in the active layer (optimal 10 wt.%) and their morphology. In the presented work, we showed that devices based on 1D ZnS nanowires were distinguished by the high value of Voc parameter (with the maximum achieved value of 0.634 V). Also we investigated the spatial layout of nanocrystals in the device, depending on its post treatment, using atomic force microscopy (AFM), time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS). Our study showed spatial segregation of nanocrystals to both interfaces with electrodes, and also we showed significant changes (0.71 eV at the top) in the PEDOT:PSS work function after mixing with ZnS nanocrystals, which resulted in an increase in the difference in contact potential at respective electrodes, which explained the high value of Voc. In comparison to our previous study, by replacing an active layer of the 0D ZnS nanocrystals with 1D ZnS nanowires, nearly a triple increase of the overall efficiency (maximum of % η of 0.568) of the device was observed.

Monolithically Integrated Self-Charging Power Pack Consisting of a Silicon Nanowire Array/Conductive Polymer Hybrid Solar Cell and a Laser-Scribed Graphene Supercapacitor.

Owing to the need for portable and sustainable energy sources and the development trend for microminiaturization and multifunctionalization in the electronic components, the study of integrated self-charging power packs has attracted increasing attention. A new self-charging power pack consisting of a silicon nanowire array/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrenesulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) hybrid solar cell and a laser-scribed graphene (LSG) supercapacitor has been fabricated. The Si nanowire array/PEDOT:PSS hybrid solar cell structure exhibited a high power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 12.37%. The LSG demonstrated excellent energy storage capability for the power pack, with high current density, energy density, and cyclic stability when compared to other supercapacitor electrodes such as active carbon and conducting polymers. The overall efficiency of the power unit is 2.92%.

Enhancing the Power Conversion Efficiency for Polymer Solar Cells by Incorporating Luminescent Nanosolid Micelles as Light Converter

In this research contribution, the idea is created that Ln3+-doped nanosolid micelles have first been applied to enhance the photovoltaic properties of novel hybrid polymer solar cells (HPSCs). Among other publications in the literature, we have never found the same or similar work to be published previously. The new method of Ln3+-doped diblock copolymer (DBC) to develop nanosolid micelle luminescent materials is established. Very importantly the applicable technique to incorporate nanosolid micelles into PSCs by spin-coating on the surface of the indium tin oxide (ITO) layer is accomplished after comparing the different cooperation methods. This research contribution elucidates two novel HPSCs containing Ln3+ nanosolid micelles formed by Ln3+-doped diblock copolymer (Ln3+-DBC) and organic conjugated ligands. The Ln3+-DBC luminescent nanosolid micelles (LNSMs) are formed via coordination between Ln3+ ions and DBC, and are readily dispersed in a hydrophobic solvent. Nanosolid micelles can be incorporated ...

Multi-walled carbon nanotube incorporated nanoporous titanium dioxide electrodes for hybrid polymer solar cells

This study focuses on incorporating multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT) in nanoporous titanium dioxides (TiO2) thin film for enhancing the performance of hybrid poly(3-hexylthiophene)(P3HT)/TiO2 solar cells. MWNTs were successfully incorporated in the nanoporous TiO2 electrodes either by systematically blending or dipping prior to the deposition of P3HT. Current density–voltage (J-V) characteristic of the corresponding fabricated devices showed that the short-circuit current density (JSC) and fill factor are strongly influenced by the amount of MWNT incorporated into TiO2 nanoparticles. Solar cells with optimum amount of MWNT incorporated by blending in nanoporous TiO2 layer showed a factor of two efficiency enhancement, mainly due to improvement in JSC compared to the corresponding control device. Further increment in MWNT reduces the efficiency mainly due to a sharp drop in fill factor and VOC, which can be attributed to shunting by excess amount of MWNTs. Devices with MWNT dip-coated TiO2 and polymer too showed enhanced efficiency over 2.5% under AM 1.5 illumination (100 mW cm−2), which is a factor of three higher than the corresponding control device.

High-performance solution-based CdS-conjugated hybrid polymer solar cells.

In this study, hybrid BHJ – bulk heterojunction polymer solar cells were fabricated by incorporating CdS quantum dots (QDs) in a blend of P3HT (donor) and PCBM (acceptor) using dichlorobenzene and chlorobenzene as solvents. CdS QDs at various ratios were mixed in a fixed amount of the P3HT and PCBM blend. The prepared samples have been characterized by a variety of techniques such as I–V and EQE measurements, atomic force microscopy (AFM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectroscopy. The mixing of QDs in the polymer blends improved the PCE – power conversion efficiency of the solar cells under standard light conditions. The improved PCE from 2.95 to 4.41% is mostly due to the increase in the fill factor (FF) and short-circuit current (Jsc) of the devices with an optimum amount of CdS in the P3HT:PCBM blend. The increase in Jsc possibly originated from the formation of a percolation network of CdS. The conjugation of QDs has increased the absorption of the active layers in the visible region. These results well matched as reported, conjugation of CdS in the perovskite active layer increased the absorption and PCE of the devices relative to those of the perovskite films. This increment in parameters is attributed to the decrease in charge recombinations that improved the performance of the doped device.

Surface tailoring of newly developed amorphous Zn[sbnd]Si[sbnd]O thin films as electron injection/transport layer by plasma treatment: Application to inverted OLEDs and hybrid solar cells

We report a unique amorphous oxide semiconductor ZnSiO (a-ZSO) which has a small work function of 3.4 eV for as-deposited films. The surface modification of a-ZSO thin films by plasma treatments is examined to apply it to the electron injection/transport layer of organic devices. It turns out that the energy alignment and exciton dissociation efficiency at a-ZSO/organic semiconductor interface significantly changes by choosing different gas (oxygen or argon) for plasma treatments (after a-ZSO was exposed to atmospheric environment for 5 days). In situ ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) measurement reveals that the work function of a-ZSO is increased to 4.0 eV after an O2-plasma treatment, while the work function of 3.5 eV is recovered after an Ar-plasma treatment which indicates this treatment is effective for surface cleaning. To study the effects of surface treatments to device performance, OLEDs and hybrid polymer solar cells with O2-plasma or Ar-plasma treated a-ZSO are compared. Effects of these surface treatments on performance of inverted OLEDs and hybrid polymer solar cells are examined. Ar-plasma treated a-ZSO works well as the electron injection layer in inverted OLEDs (Alq3/a-ZSO) because the injection barrier is small (∼ 0.1 eV). On the other hands, O2-plasma treated a-ZSO is more suitable for application to hybrid solar cells which is benefiting from higher exciton dissociation efficiency at polymer (P3HT)/ZSO interface.

Fabrication of Hybrid Polymer Solar Cells By Inverted Structure Based on P3HT:PCBM Active Layer

Hybrid polymer solar cell has privilege than its conventional structure, where it usually has structure of (ITO/PEDOT:PSS/Active Layer/Al). In humid environment the PEDOT:PSS will absorb water and hence can easily etch the ITO. Therefore it is necessary to use an alternative method to avoid this drawback and obtain more stable polymer solar cells, namely by using hybrid polymer solar cells structure with an inverted device architecture from the conventional, by reversing the nature of charge collection. In this paper we report the results of the fabrication of inverted bulk heterojunction polymer solar cells based on P3HT:PCBM as active layer, utilizing ZnO interlayer as buffer layer between the ITO and active layer with a stacked structure of ITO/ZnO/P3HT:PCBM/PEDOT:PSS/Ag. The ZnO interlayer is formed through short route, i.e. by dissolving ZnO nanoparticles powder in chloroform-methanol solvent blend rather than by sol-gel process. Based on the measurement results on electrical characteristics of inverted polymer solar cells under 500 W/m2 illumination and AM 1.5 direct filter at room temperature, cell with annealing process of active layer at 110 °C for 10 minutes results in higher cell performance than without annealing, with an open-circuit voltage of 0.21 volt, a short-circuit current density of 1.33 mA/cm2 , a fill factor of 43.1%, and a power conversion efficiency of 0.22%. The low cell’s performance is caused by very rough surface of ZnO interlayer.

Improved device performance stability of bulk-heterojunction hybrid solar cells with low molecular weight PCPDPTB

The molecular weight effect of low band-gap conjugated polymer, poly[2,6-(4,4-bis-(2-ethylhexyl)-4H-cyclopenta[2,1-b;3,4-b′]dithiophene)-alt-4,7-(2,1,3-benzothiadiazole)], PCPDTBT, with an optical energy gap of Eg ∼1.4eV, on the device stability of quantum dot polymer hybrid solar cells has been studied. The PCPDTBT is integrated into hybrid polymer/QDs solar cells, where PCPDTBT acts as electron donor and CdSe QDs as electron acceptor. Morphology investigation and results on device performance over time indicate that low molecular weight PCPDTBT is preferable to fabricate high efficiency hybrid solar cells with long-term stability. An average power conversion efficiency of 2% was measured for PCPDTBT-CdSe QD devices with a molecular weight of <12kDa. The long-term stability of the photovoltaic performance of the devices was investigated and found superior compared to devices with PCPDTBT of higher molecular weight. About 96% of the PCE remained after a week of storage of solar cell devices without any further encapsulation in a glove-box. It is assumed that the improvement is mainly due to the better distribution of CdSe QDs within the polymer matrix of low molecular weight PCPDTBT in hybrid solar cells and an improved preservation of the nanomorphology of the hybrid film over time.

Improved Separation and Collection of Charge Carriers in Micro-Pyramidal-Structured Silicon/PEDOT:PSS Hybrid Solar Cells

Silicon (Si)/organic polymer hybrid solar cells have great potential for becoming cost-effective and efficient energy-harvesting devices. We report herein on the effects of polymer coverage and the rear electrode on the device performance of Si/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) hybrid solar cells with micro-pyramidal structures. These hybrid solar cells provided adequate generation of charge carriers owing to the suppression of reflectance to below 13%. Additionally, the separation of the photogenerated charge carriers at the micro-pyramidal-structured Si/PEDOT:PSS interface regions and their collection at the electrodes were dramatically improved by tuning the adhesion areas of the PEDOT:PSS layer and the rear electrode materials, thereby attaining a power conversion efficiency of 8.25%. These findings suggest that it is important to control the PEDOT:PSS coverage and to optimize the rear electrode materials in order to achieve highly efficient separation of the charge carriers and their effective collection in micro-textured hybrid solar cells.

Charge-separation enhancement in inverted polymer solar cells by molecular-level triple heterojunction: NiO-np:P3HT:PCBM

Hole collection and transport are crucial physical processes in bulk-heterojunction (BHJ) solar cells, which represent major bottlenecks due to their limitations in power conversion efficiency (PCE). Hence, a more efficient alternative is needed to accept and transport holes to the collection electrode in BHJ solar cells. Here, we bring both electron and hole collection centres close to the point of exciton generation by infiltrating P3HT poly(3-hexylthiophene):PCBM ([6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester) blend into a highly porous interconnected p-type NiO-nanoparticle (NiO-np) network, through solvent-assisted grafting. In this study, a hybrid polymer solar cell is demonstrated with a P3HT:PCBM:NiO-np triple-heterojunction active layer which showed greatly improved rectification behaviour, long electron lifetime and generated higher PCE of 4% under AM 1.5 solar illumination with a 75% increase in PCE with respect to the P3HT:PCBM device. The optimum NiO-np amount and active-layer thickness were found to be 2% and 250 nm, respectively.

Enhancement in Efficiency of Hybrid Polymer Solar Cells By CdSe Quantum Dot Doping

Polymer solar cells (PSC) is a current frontier international research and development area owing to inherent advantages in these devices[1-5]. It includes cost effectiveness, flexibility, easy processibility, large area applications etc. Power conversion efficiency of ~ 10 % have already been achieved in bulk-heterojunction solar cells in single cell geometry and more than 11% in tendom configuration[8.9]. One of the limitations in the commercialization of this photovoltaic technology is the stability issue. To address both the efficiency and stability in these devices, there is another promising approach wherein inorganic semiconductor quantum dots are doped in polymer donor-acceptor composite matrix[6.7]. The advantage of these hybrid devices is that the inorganic components viz. quantum dots provide stability and enhanced mobility of charge carrier in the nanomatrix which in turn results in increase in efficiency as well. In this work we demonstrate the effect of Cadmium Selenide (CdSe) quantum dots (size~5nm) doping in poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT):[6,6]-phenyl C61 butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM), and 2-methoxy-5-(2-ethylhexyloxy)-polyphenylenevinylene (MEH-PPV): PCBM bulk heterojunction matrix where it results in considerable enhancement in efficiency in these devices. In fact the devices have been made in ambient air rather than in inert glove box conditions to illustrate conceptually the effect of CdSe quantum dots where it results in the enhancement of efficiency from 1.3 to 2% for P3HT:PCBM matrix, and 0.6 to 1.5 % for MEH-PPV:PCBM matrix. This enhancement of efficiency on CdSe quantum dot doping has been attributed to the pivotal role played by CdSe quantum dots viz. (i) it results in faster separation of excitons at donor-acceptor interface, (ii) it enables the faster transport of electrons after separation and their subsequent extraction/collection at the electrodes. This work owes promise for developing further cost effective, better efficient and stable hybrid polymer solar cells. REFERENCES Scharber M. C., Mühlbacher D., Koppe M., Denk P., Waldauf C., Heeger A. J., Brabec C. J., Adv. Mater. 18 (2006) 789–794.Ma W., Yang C. Gong X., Lee K., Heeger A. J., Adv. Funct. Mater. 15 (2005) 1617-1622.Heinemann M. D., Maydell K. von, Zutz F., Kolny-Olesiak J., Borchert H., Riedel I., Parisi J., Adv. Funct. Mater. 19 (2009) 3788–3795.Riedel I., Parisi J., Dyakonov V., Lutsen L. Vanderzande D., Hummelen J.C., Adv. Funct. Mater. 14 (2004) 38-44.Yu G., Gao J., Hummelen J. C., Wudi F., Heeger A. J., Science 270 (1995)1789-1791.Huynh W.U., Dittmer J. J., Alivisatos A. P., Science 295 (2002) 2425- 2427.Greenham N. C., Peng X., Alivisatos A. P., Phys. Rev. B 54 (1996) 17628.Sih-Hao Liao, Hong-Jyun Jhuo, Po-Nan Yeh, Yu-Shan Cheng, Yi-Lun Li, Yu-Hsuan Lee, Sunil Sharma & Show-An Chen, SCIENTIFIC REPORTS (2014) 4 : 6813.By Yongye Liang, Zheng Xu, Jiangbin Xia, Szu-Ting Tsai, Yue Wu, Gang Li,*Claire Ray, and Luping Yu, Adv. Mater. 22 (2010) E135–E138.

Highly Efficient Hybrid Polymer and Amorphous Silicon Multijunction Solar Cells with Effective Optical Management.

Highly efficient hybrid multijunction solar cells are constructed with a wide-bandgap amorphous silicon for the front subcell and a low-bandgap polymer for the back subcell. Power conversion efficiencies of 11.6% and 13.2% are achieved in tandem and triple-junction configurations, respectively. The high efficiencies are enabled by deploying effective optical management and by using photoactive materials with complementary absorption.

The influence of the composition of P3HT:TiO2 on the characteristics of hybrid polymer solar cell

In this paper, a study on the fabrication of hybrid polymer solar cells based on organic semiconductor materials P3HT (poly-3-hexylthiophene) and inorganic semiconductor materials TiO2 (titanium dioxide) has been carried out. The study is focused on the influence of the composition of P3HT and TiO2 on the optical and electrical characteristics of hybrid polymer solar cells. The composition of P3HT and TiO2 are varied with ratios of (1:1), (2:1), and (1:2), respectively, in a concentration of 10 mg/ml. The optical characterization using a UV-Vis spectrometer shows that the higher absorption of the active layer results from the (1:1) ratio of P3HT:TiO2. Based on the electrical characterization, using solar simulator on hybrid polymer solar cells, can be concluded that a mass ratio of P3HT:TiO2 (1:1) gives the best performance, with an open-circuit voltage of 0.2437 volts, a short-circuit current of 0.0029 milliamperes, a maximum power of 0.0002 milliwatts, and a power conversion efficiency of 00006%, at the light intensity of 500 W/m2.

Efficiency improvement in silicon nanowire/conductive polymer hybrid solar cells based on formic acid treatment

The mechanisms causing the improvement of PCE in hybrid SiNWs/PEDOT:PSS solar cells by formic acid treatment were investigated.

Functionalized silicon nanowires/conjugated polymer hybrid solar cells: Optical, electrical and morphological characterizations

We investigate the effects of Si nanowires surface modification with polystyrene (PS) on the performance of bulk heterojunction hybrid solar cells based on poly[2-methoxy-5-(2′-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-phenylene vinylene] (MEH-PPV) and PS-SiNWs. The optical, electrical and morphological properties of these hybrid nanocomposites have been investigated. Due to charge transfer efficiency, improved electrical coupling between SiNWs and MEH-PPV and homogeneous dispersion of functionalized SiNWs, the performance of studied photovoltaic structure shows a significant improvement with the progressive addition of PS-SiNWs. With polystyrene surrounded SiNWs as acceptor materials, the device typically shows a JSC of 7.36µA/cm2, VOC of 0.87V and a FF of 48% for the composition MEH-PPV:PS-SiNWs (1:4).

Pristine reduced graphene oxide as an energy-matched auxiliary electron acceptor in nanoarchitectural metal oxide/poly(3-hexylthiophene) hybrid solar cell

In this work, pristine reduced graphene oxide (RGO) sheets are added in the nanoarchitectural TiO2 nanorod (NR)-ZnO nanoparticle (NP)/P3HT hybrid polymer solar cells. With the addition of RGOs, the enhancement of the charge separation and the decrease of the electron lifetime in the nanoarchitectural metal oxide/P3HT hybrid are determined by time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) and impedance spectroscopy, respectively. The photovoltaic performance of the hybrid solar cell is therefore optimized by an appropriate addition of RGOs in the active layer. Moreover, intensity modulation of photocurrent spectroscopy measurements indicate that the electron transport rates in the hybrid solar cells are improved as adding RGOs in the active layer. Energy matching among P3HT, RGOs, and ZnO NPs is demonstrated in the TiO2 NR-ZnO NP/RGO/P3HT hybrid solar cell. It is respectively confirmed by TRPL and Kelvin probe force microscopy measurements that electron transfers occur effectively from P3HT to RGOs and from RGOs to ZnO NPs in the active layer. The pristine RGOs are concluded to be an energy-matched auxiliary electron acceptor in the nanoarchitectural metal-oxide/P3HT hybrid solar cell. An efficiency of 3.79% is achieved in the RGO-incorporated nanoarchitectural metal oxide/P3HT hybrid solar cell fabricated free of interfacial modification using the 900 nm-thick TiO2 NR array.

Simultaneous enhancement of photocurrent and open circuit voltage in a ZnO based organic solar cell by mixed self-assembled monolayers

In this study, we utilized the carboxylic acid functionalized molecules, namely, benzoic acid (BZA) and C61-dicarboxylic acid (CDCA) as interfacial modifiers to form self-assembled monolayers (SAM) in polymer hybrid solar cell (HSC) consisting of poly (3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and zinc oxide (ZnO). We found that the short circuit current density (Jsc) and the open circuit voltage (Voc) of the device could be drastically increased by using CDCA–SAM and BZA–SAM, respectively. On the other hand, the optimized mixture of CDCA–SAM and BZA–SAM showed better improvement in both the Jsc and Voc. The devices modified with mixed SAMs in an optimized ratio showed significant increment in the overall conversion efficiencies compared to unmodified devices consisting of both bi-layer and nanorod (NR) structured HSC. In particular, almost 1.2-fold improvement could be achieved on the NR device with the efficiencies of 0.73%. We attribute the improvement of Jsc and Voc to higher carrier mobility of CDCA–SAM and work function modulation of ZnO by BZA–SAM, respectively.