Toward Efficient Tandem Organic Solar Cells: From Materials to Device Engineering.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Renewable Energy Technologies
• Organic Electronics

Background:

• Organic solar cells (OSCs) offer advantages like light weight, low cost, and flexibility for solar energy utilization.
• Significant progress has been made, with power conversion efficiencies (PCE) increasing from ~7% to over 17% in the last decade.
• Tandem structures are a key strategy for improving OSC performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce novel active-layer materials for tandem OSC construction.
• To highlight a developed interconnecting layer (ICL) based on polymeric electron-transport layers for highly efficient tandem OSCs.
• To discuss the application of transfer matrix modeling and future research directions for tandem OSCs.

Main Methods:

• Development and selection of active-layer materials for tandem OSCs.
• Design of an interconnecting layer (ICL) using polymeric electron-transport layers with tunable properties.
• Utilizing transfer matrix modeling to predict optimal tandem OSC architectures.

Main Results:

• Achieved highly efficient tandem OSCs by tuning electron extraction and charge transport properties of the organic electron-transport layer.
• Demonstrated that a polymeric ICL offers advantages for flexible tandem devices and is compatible with printing techniques for large-area fabrication.
• Successfully applied transfer matrix modeling to predict device architecture.

Conclusions:

• Developed novel polymeric interconnecting layers significantly enhance tandem organic solar cell efficiency.
• The organic nature of polymeric materials allows for easy tuning of charge transport properties, leading to improved device performance.
• Tandem OSCs with polymeric ICLs are promising for flexible, large-area, and printable solar energy applications.