Zinc Oxide-Perylene Diimide Hybrid Electron Transport Layers for Air-Processed Inverted Organic Photovoltaic Devices
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Published on: March 2, 2021
Edward Cieplechowicz1, Rahim Munir1, Michael A Anderson2
1Department of Chemistry, University of Calgary, 2500 University Drive N.W., Calgary, Alberta T2N 1N4, Canada.
Abstract:
In this work, we report the formation of perylene diimide films, from green solvents, for use as electron transporting layers, when combined with ZnO, in inverted-type organic photovoltaics. A modified N-annulated PDI was functionalized with a tert-butyloxycarbonyl protecting group to solubilize the material, enabling solution processing from green solvents. Post-deposition treatment of films via thermal annealing cleaves the protecting group yielding the known PDIN-H material, rendering films solvent-resistant. The PDIN-H films were characterized by optical absorption spectroscopy, contact angle measurements, and atomic force microscopy. When used to modify the surface of ZnO in inverted-type organic photovoltaics (air-processed and tested) based on the PM6:Y6 and PTQ10:Y6 bulk-heterojunctions, the device power conversion efficiency increases from 9.8 to 11.0% and 7.2 to 9.8%, respectively.
