Polymer solar cells are considered as very promising candidates for development of photovoltaics of the future. They are cheap and easy to fabricate. However, up to now, they possess fundamental drawback: low effectiveness. In the most popular BHJ (bulk heterojunction) architecture the actual long-standing top efficiency is about 12\% (recent achievements about 15\%). One ask the question how fundamental this limitation is, as certain theoretical considerations suggest that it should be about two times higher. In our paper we analyze the `geometric factor' as one of possible explanation of relatively low efficiency of BHJ architecture. More precisly, we calculate the effective area of the donor-acceptor border in the random mixture of donor and acceptor nanocrystals and further compare it with an ideal 'brush' architecture. In our previous calculation for the two dimensional model, we have found that the maximal value of geometric factor was about 40\%. In the actual three dimensional model, it turned out that both architectures give very close value of the effective area. So the geometric factor seems to be not significant as a factor limiting efficiency. Implications of this fact are discussed: we list two other factors (mentioned but not thoroughly discussed in literature) which can be responsible for limitations of efficiency of BHJ architecture. We estimate their scale, and suggest that these limitations are inevitable, or at least very hard to overcome. We suggest that return to layer architecture could radically improve efficiency limitations -- however, to make breakthrough, materials with large exciton diffusion length have to be invented.
We present a heterojunction theory of ultrathin organic multi-layered devices, which is the revision of our previous work. Their characteristic feature is the generation of conductive space charge region in the insulating neutral dielectric region under the bias voltage application, while the insulating space charge region is generated in the conductive neutral region in the case of semiconductors. We propose the concept of quasiconductor to describe these features. From the theory, the capacitor equation of mobile carriers is given, which is an equivalent equation of the Mott-Schottky equatio…
Polymer solar cells are considered as very promising candidates for development of photovoltaics of the future. They are cheap and easy to fabricate, however, up to now, they possess fundamental drawback, low effectiveness. In the most popular BHJ (bulk heterojunction) architecture the actual record of efficiency is about 13 percent. One ask the question how fundamental this limitation is. In our paper we propose the simple model which examines the limitations of efficiency by analysis of geometrical aspects of the BHJ architecture. In this paper we considered two dimensional model. We calcula…
Influence of chemical interactions on the electronic properties of BiOI/organic semiconductor heterojunctions for application in solution-processed electronics
Parameter estimation procedures provide valuable guidance in the understanding and improvement of organic solar cells and other devices. They often rely on one-dimensional models, but in the case of bulk-heterojunction (BHJ) designs, it is not straightforward that these models' parameters have a consistent physical interpretation. Indeed, contrarily to two- or three-dimensional models, the BHJ morphology is not explicitly described in one-dimensional models and must be implicitly expressed through effective parameters. In order to inform experimental decisions, a helpful parameter estimation m…
The performance of organic solar cells strongly depends on the bulk heterojunction (BHJ) morphology of the photoactive layer. This BHJ forms during the drying of the wet-deposited solution, because of physical processes such as crystallization and/or liquid liquid phase separation (LLPS). However, the process-structure relationship remains insufficiently understood. In this work, a recently developed, coupled phase field fluid mechanics framework is used to simulate the BHJ formation upon drying. For the first time, this allows to investigate the interplay between all the relevant physical pro…
We investigate nongeminate recombination in organic solar cells based on copper phthalocyanine (CuPc) and C$_{60}$. Two device architectures, the planar heterojunction (PHJ) and the bulk heterojunction (BHJ), are directly compared in view of differences in charge carrier decay dynamics. We apply a combination of transient photovoltage (TPV) experiments, yielding the small perturbation charge carrier lifetime, and charge extraction measurements, providing the charge carrier density. In organic solar cells, charge photogeneration and recombination primarily occur at the donor--acceptor heteroint…
Hybrid conjugated polymer/fullerene filaments based on MEH-PPV/PVP/PCBM are prepared by electrospinning, and their properties assessed by scanning electron, atomic and lateral force, tunnelling, and confocal microscopy, as well as by attenuated total reflection Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy, photoluminescence quantum yield and spatially-resolved fluorescence. Highlighted features include ribbon-shape of the realized fibers, and the persistence of a network serving as a template for heterogeneous active layers in solar cell devices. A set of favorable characteristics is evidenced in t…
Colloidal zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles are frequently used in the field of organic photovoltaics for the realization of solution-producible, electron-selective interfacial layers. Despite of the widespread use, there is a lack of detailed investigations regarding the impact of structural properties of the particles on the device performance. In this work, ZnO nanoparticles with varying surface-area-to-volume ratio were synthesized and implemented into polymer-fullerene bulk heterojunction solar cells with a gas-permeable top electrode. By comparing the electrical characteristics before and a…
Transparent electronics offer exciting light harvesting solutions for generation of electrical power via demonstration of "see-through" optoelectronic devices. The wireless energy harvesting ability can empower unplugged and battery-free operations for Internet of Things (IoT) devices. In this study, we report a transparent, luminescent, and elastomeric optical waveguide incorporating quantum dots that is in-situ coupled with organic solar cell array made of P3HT:PC61BM bulk heterojunction. CdSe@ZnS QDs have a photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) of 91% and are synthetically engineered to ma…
In this article the Wells-Dawson polyoxometalate K6[P2W18O62] is grown as an interfacial layer between indium tin oxide and bulk heterojunction of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM). The structure of the POM layers depends on the thickness and shows a highly anisotropic surface organization. The films have been characterized by atomic force microscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) to gain insight into their macroscopic organization and better understand their electronic properties. Then, they were put at the anodic interface of a P3…
The stability of organic solar cells is strongly affected by the morphology of the photoactive layers, whose separated crystalline and/or amorphous phases are kinetically quenched far from their thermodynamic equilibrium during the production process. The evolution of these structures during the lifetime of the cell remains poorly understood. In this paper, a phase-field simulation framework is proposed, handling liquid-liquid demixing and polycrystalline growth at the same time in order to investigate the evolution of crystalline immiscible binary systems. We find that initially, the nuclei t…
Non-fullerene acceptors based on perylenediimides (PDIs) have garnered significant interest as an alternative to fullerene acceptors in organic photovoltaics (OPVs), but their charge transport phenomena are not well understood, especially in bulk heterojunctions (BHJs). Here, we investigate charge transport and current fluctuations by performing correlated low-frequency noise and impedance spectroscopy measurements on two BHJ OPV systems, one employing a fullerene acceptor and the other employing a dimeric PDI acceptor. In the dark, these measurements reveal that PDI-based OPVs have a greater …
In organic solar cells, photogenerated singlet excitons form charge transfer (CT) complexes, which subsequently split into free charge carriers. Here, we consider the contributions of excess energy and molecular quadrupole moments to the charge separation process. We investigate charge photogeneration in two separate bulk heterojunction systems consisting of the polymer donor PTB7-Th and two non-fullerene acceptors, ITIC and h-ITIC. CT state dissociation in these donor-acceptor systems is monitored by charge density decay dynamics obtained from transient absorption experiments. We study the el…
Bulk-heterojunction (BHJ) non-fullerene organic solar cells prepared from sequentially deposited donor and acceptor layers (sq-BHJ) have recently been promising to be highly efficient, environmentally friendly, and compatible with large area and roll-to-toll fabrication. However, the related photophysics at donor-acceptor interface and the vertical heterogeneity of donor-acceptor distribution, critical for exciton dissociation and device performance, are largely unexplored. Herein, steady-state and time-resolved optical and electrical techniques are employed to characterize the interfacial tra…
High-efficiency organic photocathodes, based on regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) and phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (rr-P3HT:PCBM) bulk heterojunction sandwiched between charge-selective layers, are emerging as efficient and low-cost devices for solar hydrogen production by water splitting. Nevertheless, stability issues of the materials used as charge-selective layers are hampering the realization of long-lasting photoelectrodes, pointing out the need to investigate novel and stable materials. Here, we propose MoS2 nano-flakes, produced by Li-aided exfoliation of bulk counterpart, as…
Non-fullerene acceptor (NFA)-based ternary bulk heterojunction solar cells (TSC) are the most efficient organic solar cells (OSCs) today due to their broader absorption and quantum efficiencies (QE) often surpassing those of corresponding binary blends. We study how the energetics driving charge transfer at the electron donor:electron acceptor (D/A) interfaces impact the QE in blends of PBDB-T-2F donor with several pairs of lower bandgap NFAs. As in binary blends, the ionization energy offset between donor and acceptor (ΔIE) controls the QE and maximizes for ΔIE > 0.5 eV. However, ΔIE is not c…
After the efficiency of organic photovoltaic (OPV) cells achieved more than 10%, the control of stability and degradation mechanisms of solar cells became a prominent task. The improvement of device efficiency due to incorporation of a hole-transport layer (HTL) in bulk-heterojunction solar cells has been extensively reported. However, the most widely used HTL material, PEDOT:PSS is frequently suspected to be the dominating source for devices instability under environmental conditions. Thereby effects like photooxidation and electrode corrosion are often reported to shorten device lifetime. Ho…
Regio-regular poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (rr-P3HT), the work-horse of organic photovoltaics, has been recently exploited in bulk heterojunction (BHJ) configuration with phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) for solution-processed hydrogen-evolving photocathodes, reaching cathodic photocurrents at 0 V vs. RHE (J0V vs RHE) of up to 8 mA cm-2. The photoelectrochemical performance of these photocathodes strongly depends on the presence of the electron (ESL) and hole (HSL) selective layer. While TiO2 and its sub-stoichiometric phases are consolidated ESL materials, the currently used HSL…
Intrinsic hydrogenated amorphous silicon films can provide outstanding surface passivation of crystalline silicon wafer surfaces. This quality of Intrinsic hydrogenated amorphous silicon makes it valuable in heterojunction with intrinsic thin layer (HIT) solar cell fabrication. This paper describes the material characteristics and electronic properties of Intrinsic hydrogenated amorphous silicon that affects its passivation quality. A study of passivation quality of intrinsic hydrogenated amorphous silicon layer has been done with respect to deposition parameters in Plasma Enhanced Chemical Va…
