Improving Air-Stability and Performance of Bulk Heterojunction Polymer Solar Cells Using Solvent Engineered Hole
Binrui Xu1, Gopalan Sai-Anand2, Hyun-Min Jeong3
1School of Electronics Engineering, College of IT Engineering, Kyungpook National University, 80 Daehakro, Bukgu, Daegu 41566, Korea. kezherui123@gmail.com.
Materials (Basel, Switzerland)
|July 7, 2018
Summary
Ethanol treatment of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) hole selective interlayers significantly improves polymer solar cell performance and air-stability. This solvent engineering approach enhances power conversion efficiency and device longevity.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Renewable Energy
- Organic Electronics
Background:
- Bulk heterojunction polymer solar cells (BHJ-PSCs) commonly use poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) as a hole selective interlayer (HSIL).
- The inherent acidity and hygroscopic nature of PEDOT:PSS, along with indium tin oxide (ITO) etching, can negatively impact BHJ-PSC performance and air-stability.
Purpose of the Study:
- To engineer the HSIL using solvent treatment to enhance both photovoltaic performance and air-stability of BHJ-PSCs.
- To investigate the effects of ethanol (ET) treatment on PEDOT:PSS properties and BHJ-PSC characteristics.
Main Methods:
- Solvent engineering of the PEDOT:PSS HSIL using ethanol.
- Systematic investigation of microstructural, morphological, and interfacial characteristics of the modified HSIL.
- Fabrication and characterization of BHJ-PSCs with pristine and ET-treated PEDOT:PSS.
Main Results:
- Ethanol treatment (1:0.5 v/v) of PEDOT:PSS resulted in significant enhancements in BHJ-PSC photovoltaic performance.
- A power conversion efficiency enhancement of approximately 17% was observed for devices utilizing the ET-treated PEDOT:PSS HSIL.
- BHJ-PSCs with the ET-treated PEDOT:PSS HSIL demonstrated remarkably improved air-stability compared to control devices.
Conclusions:
- Solvent engineering of PEDOT:PSS with ethanol is an effective strategy to overcome limitations of traditional HSILs in BHJ-PSCs.
- The modified HSIL simultaneously boosts power conversion efficiency and enhances the operational lifetime of polymer solar cells.
- This approach offers a facile method for improving the overall viability of BHJ-PSCs for practical applications.
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