Enhanced organic photovoltaic-based retinal prosthesis using a cathode-modified structure with plasmonic silver...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Materials Science
• Organic Electronics

Background:

• Organic interfaces show promise for retinal prostheses due to flexibility and biocompatibility.
• Organic photovoltaics (OPVs) face efficiency challenges compared to inorganic counterparts.
• Plasmonic metal nanoparticles (NPs) can enhance OPV performance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To computationally investigate an improved organic photovoltaic (OPV) structure for biomedical applications.
• To explore a novel strategy for enhancing light absorption and interface performance using silver nanoparticles (AgNPs).
• To avoid detrimental effects of NPs within the active layer.

Main Methods:

• A computational study was performed on an organic photovoltaic device.
• Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were incorporated into the cathode electrode (K-AgNPs) and active layer (A-AgNPs).
• The bulk heterojunction PCPDTBT:PCBM was selected as the active layer.

Main Results:

• The K-AgNPs configuration demonstrated a 10% increase in photovoltaic cell current density.
• The modeled device achieved a two-fold efficiency improvement compared to the bare cell, especially at low light intensities.
• This design avoids issues like exciton quenching and charge trapping associated with NPs in the active layer.

Conclusions:

• Embedding AgNPs in the cathode electrode is an effective strategy to enhance OPV performance.
• This approach offers a viable alternative to conventional methods, mitigating efficiency losses.
• The proposed structure shows potential for efficient epiretinal prostheses.