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Related Concept Videos

P-N junction01:11

P-N junction

A p-n junction is formed when p-type and n-type semiconductor materials are joined together. At the interface of the p-n junction, holes from the p-side and electrons from the n-side begin to diffuse into the opposite sides due to the concentration gradient. This diffusion of carriers leads to a region around the junction where there are no free charge carriers, known as the depletion region. The charge density within the depletion region for the n-side and p-side can be described by the...
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The Z-Scheme of Electron Transport in Photosynthesis

The light reactions of photosynthesis assume a linear flow of electrons from water to NADP+. During this process, light energy drives the splitting of water molecules to produce oxygen. However, oxidation of water molecules is a thermodynamically unfavorable reaction and requires a strong oxidizing agent. This is accomplished by the first product of light reactions: oxidized P680 (or P680+), the most powerful oxidizing agent known in biology. The oxidized P680 that acquires an electron from the...
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Ziegler–Natta Chain-Growth Polymerization: Overview

Ziegler–Natta polymerization is another form of addition or chain‐growth polymerization used for synthesizing linear polymers over branched polymers. The catalyst used for polymerization is the Ziegler–Natta catalyst, named after Karl Ziegler and Giulio Natta, who developed it in 1953. This catalyst is an organometallic complex of titanium tetrachloride and triethyl aluminum, with the active form of the catalyst being an alkyl titanium compound. Using the Ziegler–Natta catalyst, high molecular...
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Induced Electric Dipoles

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Since the absolute value of potential energy holds no physical meaning, its zero value can be chosen as per...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 20, 2026

Well-aligned Vertically Oriented ZnO Nanorod Arrays and their Application in Inverted Small Molecule Solar Cells
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A "zig-zag" naphthodithiophene core for increased efficiency in solution-processed small molecule solar cells.

Stephen Loser1, Hiroyuki Miyauchi, Jonathan W Hennek

  • 1Department of Chemistry and the Argonne-Northwestern Solar Energy Research (ANSER) Center, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA.

Chemical Communications (Cambridge, England)
|July 24, 2012
PubMed
Summary

Researchers developed a novel zig-zag core small molecule (zNDT) for enhanced solar cell performance. This molecule achieved higher efficiency (4.7%) compared to its linear counterpart.

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Area of Science:

  • Organic electronics
  • Materials science
  • Photovoltaics

Background:

  • Solution-processed small molecules are crucial for cost-effective organic electronics.
  • Molecular design significantly impacts the performance of organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices.
  • The naphtho[2,3-b:6,7-b0]dithiophene (NDT) core is a promising building block for OPVs.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To synthesize and characterize a novel "zig-zag" core small molecule (zNDT).
  • To investigate the impact of the zNDT core's geometry on charge transport and photovoltaic properties.
  • To compare the performance of zNDT-based solar cells with devices utilizing the linear NDT isomer.

Main Methods:

  • Solution processing for small molecule synthesis and device fabrication.
  • Characterization of molecular structure and frontier molecular orbital (MO) energies.
  • Fabrication and testing of organic photovoltaic (OPV) cells.

Main Results:

  • The novel zNDT molecule demonstrated high hole mobility.
  • zNDT exhibited upshifted frontier molecular orbital energies.
  • Photovoltaic cells based on zNDT showed enhanced short-circuit currents, fill-factors, and power conversion efficiencies (4.7%).

Conclusions:

  • The "zig-zag" molecular design of zNDT is superior to the linear NDT isomer for OPV applications.
  • The upshifted MO energies and high hole mobility contribute to improved photovoltaic performance.
  • Solution-processed zNDT offers a promising pathway for efficient and cost-effective organic solar cells.