Solution-Processable Hyperbranched Conjugated Polymer Nanoparticles Based on C3h -Symmetric Benzotrithiophene for
Xiaofu Wu1, Zijian Zhang2, Hao Hang2
1State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, 130022, P. R. China.
Abstract:
The development of photovoltaic polymers based on C3h -symmetric benzotrithiophene (C3h -BTT), an analogue of the well-known benzodithiophene (BDT) donor unit, has been severely limited due to difficult processability. Here the authors report the preparation of solution-processable C3h -BTT-based hyperbranched conjugated polymer nanoparticles (BTT-HCPNs) with tunable particle sizes via Stille miniemulsion polymerization. Compared with the corresponding star-shaped small molecule (C3h -BTT core with three diketopyrrolopyrrole arms, BTT-3DPP) with a wide bandgap (1.83 eV), both BTT-HCPNs show strong aggregation even in dilute solutions, leading to much-extended absorption (up to ≈1000 nm) and lower bandgaps (1.38 eV). The larger BTT-HCPN particle exhibits stronger aggregation and more extended absorption than the smaller one. As a result, solar cells fabricated from BTT-HCPNs/PC71 BM solutions show a power conversion efficiency up to 1.51% after DIO additive treatment, much higher than that of BTT-3DPP (0.31%).
