Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 17, 2026
In situ Grazing Incidence Small Angle X-ray Scattering on Roll-To-Roll Coating of Organic Solar Cells with Laboratory X-ray Instrumentation
Published on: March 2, 2021
Revitalizing Fulleropyrrolidine via Nonionic Sidechain Engineering: An Ethanol-Processible Interlayer Enabling
Yanhui Fan1, Junjie Wen1, Hao Wu1
1State Key Laboratory of Chemical Resource Engineering, Beijing Advanced Innovation Center for Soft Matter Science and Engineering, College of Chemistry, Beijing University of Chemical Technology, Beijing, China.
New fullerene derivatives offer stable, efficient organic solar cells (OSCs) using eco-friendly solvents. These materials enable thickness-insensitive, high-performance cathode interlayers for scalable photovoltaic technologies.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Organic Electronics
- Photovoltaics
Background:
- Organic solar cells (OSCs) require advanced cathode interlayer materials (CIMs) for improved performance and stability.
- Key CIM requirements include thickness-insensitivity for upscaling, reduced hydrophilicity for stability, and green solvent processability for sustainability and cost reduction.
Purpose of the Study:
- To design and synthesize novel bis-sulfonimide-functionalized fulleropyrrolidine derivatives with nonionic sidechains as CIMs for OSCs.
- To evaluate the electronic properties, charge transport, and stability of these new materials.
- To demonstrate their performance in various OSC systems, focusing on efficiency, stability, and scalability.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of bis-sulfonimide-functionalized fulleropyrrolidine derivatives with phosphonate ester (C60-BSI-PS) and carbonate ester sidechains.
- Characterization of electronic properties and comparison with benchmark materials.
- Fabrication and testing of OSC devices using the synthesized CIMs processed from ethanol.
- Evaluation of device performance (PCE) and operational stability under varying film thicknesses and across different OSC systems.
Main Results:
- C60-BSI-PS demonstrated superior electronic properties and efficient charge transport compared to its carbonate-ester counterpart and ionic fulleropyrrolidine.
- Devices with C60-BSI-PS interlayers achieved a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 19.76% in PM6:D18:L8-BO-based OSCs.
- The material maintained over 94% of its optimal PCE even at an ultra-thick coating of 81 nm, indicating thickness insensitivity.
- High solubility in ethanol allowed processing without toxic solvents, and excellent operational stability was observed.
- Demonstrated broad applicability across various OSC systems, achieving high PCEs for both small-area (21.11%) and large-area (19.69%) devices.
Conclusions:
- Judicious sidechain functionalization of fullerene-based materials is a viable strategy for developing high-performance, sustainable CIMs.
- C60-BSI-PS offers a promising solution for scalable, stable, and efficient organic solar cells.
- The developed materials pave the way for next-generation photovoltaic technologies utilizing green chemistry principles.
More Related Videos
08:29Morphology Control for Fully Printable Organic–Inorganic Bulk-heterojunction Solar Cells Based on a Ti-alkoxide and Semiconducting Polymer
Published on: January 10, 2017
09:17Reductive Electropolymerization of a Vinyl-containing Poly-pyridyl Complex on Glassy Carbon and Fluorine-doped Tin Oxide Electrodes
Published on: January 30, 2015
