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Manipulating Molecular Stacking for Semitransparent Organic Photovoltaics Achieving Light Utilization Efficiency >6
Junyuan Ding1, Hongyu Mou1, Haiyang Chen1
1Laboratory of Advanced Optoelectronic Materials, Suzhou Key Laboratory of Novel Semiconductor-optoelectronics Materials and Devices, State Key Laboratory of Bioinspired Interfacial Materials Science, College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Materials Science, Soochow University, Suzhou, 215123, China.
Researchers enhanced semitransparent organic solar cells (ST-OSCs) by designing host-guest active layers. This approach simultaneously improved visible transmittance and power conversion efficiency, achieving record light utilization efficiency.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Organic Electronics
- Photovoltaics
Background:
- The performance of semitransparent organic solar cells (ST-OSCs) is limited by the trade-off between average visible transmittance (AVT) and power conversion efficiency (PCE).
- Molecular stacking of donor and acceptor materials critically influences light utilization efficiency (LUE) in ST-OSCs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To simultaneously enhance AVT and PCE in ST-OSCs.
- To fine-tune molecular stacking in active layers using a host-guest system.
- To achieve record light utilization efficiency (LUE) in ST-OSCs.
Main Methods:
- Systematic investigation of host donor (D18) and guest material (BTO-BO) combinations.
- Design of host-guest active layers to control molecular stacking and intermolecular interactions (C─H···O hydrogen bonding).
- Fabrication of toluene-processed ST-OSCs and evaluation of optical modulation, PCE, AVT, and LUE.
Main Results:
- Host-guest interactions (D18:BTO-BO) induced predominant J-type stacking, reducing visible absorption and improving hole transport.
- BTO-BO acted as a nucleation agent for BTP-eC9, enhancing active layer crystallinity and near-infrared absorption.
- Achieved simultaneous improvements in PCE and AVT, resulting in a record LUE of 6.02%.
Conclusions:
- Host-guest active layer design is an effective strategy to overcome the AVT-PCE trade-off in ST-OSCs.
- The developed ST-OSCs exhibit excellent compatibility with flexible devices and scalability for applications like greenhouses.
- This approach offers a promising pathway for advancing high-performance ST-OSCs.
