Browse
Submit Data
Databases
API
Help

Dataset Information

22 Views

0 Connections

0 Citations

0 Reanalyses

0 Downloads

Omics score: 0

Enhanced charge separation in ternary P3HT/PCBM/CuInS2 nanocrystals hybrid solar cells.

ABSTRACT: Geminate recombination of bound polaron pairs at the donor/acceptor interface is one of the major loss mechanisms in organic bulk heterojunction solar cells. One way to overcome Coulomb attraction between opposite charge carriers and to achieve their full dissociation is the introduction of high dielectric permittivity materials such as nanoparticles of narrow band gap semiconductors. We selected CuInS2 nanocrystals of 7.4 nm size, which present intermediate energy levels with respect to poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and Phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM). Efficient charge transfer from P3HT to nanocrystals takes place as evidenced by light-induced electron spin resonance. Charge transfer between nanocrystals and PCBM only occurs after replacing bulky dodecanethiol (DDT) surface ligands with shorter 1,2-ethylhexanethiol (EHT) ligands. Solar cells containing in the active layer a ternary blend of P3HT:PCBM:CuInS2-EHT nanocrystals in 1:1:0.5 mass ratio show strongly improved short circuit current density and a higher fill factor with respect to the P3HT:PCBM reference device. Complementary measurements of the absorption properties, external quantum efficiency and charge carrier mobility indicate that enhanced charge separation in the ternary blend is at the origin of the observed behavior. The same trend is observed for blends using the glassy polymer poly(triarylamine) (PTAA).

SUBMITTER: Lefrancois A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4295099 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Json Xml

Similar Datasets

Impact of hybrid plasmonic nanoparticles on the charge carrier mobility of P3HT:PCBM polymer solar cells.

Project description:The solution processable polymer solar cells have shown a great promise as a cost-effective photovoltaic technology. Here, the effect of carrier mobility changes has been comprehensively investigated on the performance of P3HT:PCBM polymer solar cells using electro-optical coupled simulation regimes, which may result from the embedding of SiO2@Ag@SiO2 plasmonic nanoparticles (NPs) in the active layer. Firstly, the active layer thickness, stemmed from the low mobility of the charge carriers, is optimized. The device with 80 nm thick active layer provided maximum power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 3.47%. Subsequently, the PCE has increased to 6.75% and 6.5%, respectively, along with the benefit of light scattering, near-fields and interparticle hotspots produced by embedded spherical and cubic nanoparticles. The PCE of the devices with incorporated plasmonic nanoparticles are remarkably enhanced up to 7.61% (for spherical NPs) and 7.35% (for cubic NPs) owing to the increase of the electron and hole mobilities to [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text], respectively (in the optimum case). Furthermore, SiO2@Ag@SiO2 NPs have been successfully synthesized by introducing and utilizing a simple and eco-friendly approach based on electroless pre-treatment deposition and Stober methods. Our findings represent a new facile approach in the fabrication of novel plasmonic NPs for efficient polymer solar cells.

| S-EPMC8492682 | biostudies-literature

Enhanced performance of PTB7-Th:PCBM based active layers in ternary organic solar cells.

Project description:The present study aims at understanding the role of incorporating Cu2S nanocrystals (NCs) as a third component in ternary organic solar cells. Ternary photoactive blends consisting of conjugated polymer poly[4,8-bis(5-(2-ethylhexyl)thiophen-2-yl)benzo[1,2-b;4,5-b']dithiophene-2,6-diyl-alt-(4-(2-ethylhexyl)-3-fluorothieno[3,4-b]thiophene-)-(2-carboxylate-2-6-diyl)] (PTB7-Th), fullerene derivative phenyl-C71-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) and different wt% of Cu2S NCs were formulated and were employed to fabricate ternary OSCs having a device architecture of ITO/ZnO/PTB7-Th:Cu2S NCs:PCBM/MoO3/Ag. It has been observed that with the addition of 3 wt% of Cu2S NCs, an improved power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 8.20% is obtained against the PCE of 6.96% for reference devices. EIS measurements and AFM studies suggests that the presence of Cu2S NCs facilitates formation of cascading energy levels, provides smoother surfaces and helps in suppressing trap-assisted recombination.

| S-EPMC9061204 | biostudies-literature

Influence of P3HT:PCBM Ratio on Thermal and Transport Properties of Bulk Heterojunction Solar Cells.

Project description:The influence of P3HT:PCBM ratio on thermal and transport properties of solar cells were determined by photothermal beam deflection spectrometry, which is advantageous tool for non-destructively study of bulk heterojunction layers of organic solar cells. P3HT:PCBM layers of different P3HT:PCBM ratios were deposited on top of PEDOT:PSS/ITO layers which were included in organic bulk-heterojunction solar cells. The thermal diffusivity, energy gap and charge carrier lifetime were measured at different illumination conditions and with a different P3HT:PCBM ratios. As expected, it was found that the energy band gap depends on the P3HT:PCBM ratio. Thermal diffusivity is decreasing, while charge carrier lifetime is increasing with PCBM concentration. Energy band gap was found to be independent on illumination intensity, while thermal diffusivity was increasing and carrier lifetime was decreasing with illumination intensity. The carrier lifetime exhibits qualitatively similar dependence on the PCBM concentration when compared to the open-circuit voltage of operating solar cells under AM1.5 illumination. BDS and standard I-V measurement yielded comparable results arguing that the former is suitable for characterization of organic solar cells.

| S-EPMC9861154 | biostudies-literature

Addition of P3HT-grafted Silica nanoparticles improves bulk-heterojunction morphology in P3HT-PCBM blends.

Project description:We present molecular dynamics simulations of a ternary blend of P3HT, PCBM and P3HT-grafted silica nanoparticles (SiNP) for applications in polymer-based solar cells. Using coarse-grained models, we study the effect of SiNP on the spatial arrangement of PCBM in P3HT. Our results suggest that addition of SiNP not only alters the morphology of PCBM clusters but also improves the crystallinity of P3HT. We exploit the property of grafted SiNP to self-assemble into a variety of anisotropic structures and the tendency of PCBM to preferentially adhere to SiNP surface, due to favorable interactions, to achieve morphologies with desirable characteristics for the active layer, including domain size, crystallinity of P3HT, and elimination of isolated islands of PCBM. As the concentration of SiNP increases, the number of isolated PCBM molecules decreases, which in turn improves the crystallinity of P3HT domains. We also observe that by tuning the grafting parameters of SiNP, it is possible to achieve structures ranging from cylindrical to sheets to highly interconnected network of strings. The changes brought about by addition of SiNP shows a promising potential to improve the performance of these materials when used as active layers in organic photovoltaics.

| S-EPMC5024111 | biostudies-literature

A numerical study on the relationship between the doping and performance in P3HT:PCBM organic bulk heterojunction solar cells.

Project description:In this study, we perform a simulation analysis to investigate the influence of p-type and n-type doping concentration in BHJ SCs using the drift-diffusion model. Specifically, we investigate the effect of doping on the charge carrier transport and calculate the above-mentioned device parameters. We show that doping the active layer can increase the cell characteristic parameters, that the results are in an excellent agreement with the experimental results previously reported in the literature. We also show that doping causes space charge effects which subsequently lead to redistribution of the internal electric field in the device. Our results reveal that higher doping levels lead to screening the electrical field in the P3HT:PCBM active region. This in turn forces the charge carrier transport to be solely dominated by the diffusion, consequently decreasing the performance of the device. We also show that doping of the active layer to an optimum level can effectively improve the charge transport. Moreover, we show that doping can create an Ohmic contact between the organic and cathode interface. Additionally, the charge carrier concentration profile shows that by increasing the dopant concentration, the [Formula: see text] can be improved remarkably. Upon doping the active layer, this indicates that illumination can simply reduce the series resistance in the device.

| S-EPMC9899250 | biostudies-literature

Absence of Structural Impact of Noble Nanoparticles on P3HT:PCBM Blends for Plasmon-Enhanced Bulk-Heterojunction Organic Solar Cells Probed by Synchrotron GI-XRD.

Project description:The incorporation of noble metal nanoparticles, displaying localized surface plasmon resonance, in the active area of donor-acceptor bulk-heterojunction organic photovoltaic devices is an industrially compatible light trapping strategy, able to guarantee better absorption of the incident photons and give an efficiency improvement between 12% and 38%. In the present work, we investigate the effect of Au and Ag nanoparticles blended with P3HT: PCBM on the P3HT crystallization dynamics by synchrotron grazing incidence X-ray diffraction. We conclude that the presence of (1) 80 nm Au, (2) mix of 5 nm, 50 nm, 80 nm Au, (3) 40 nm Ag, and (4) 10 nm, 40 nm, 60 nm Ag colloidal nanoparticles, at different concentrations below 0.3 wt% for Au and below 0.1% for Ag in P3HT: PCBM blends, does not affect the behaviour of the blends themselves.

| S-EPMC4450591 | biostudies-other

Enhanced Charge Separation in Nanoporous BiVO4 by External Electron Transport Layer Boosts Solar Water Splitting.

Project description:The optimization of charge transport with electron-hole separation directed toward specific redox reactions is a crucial mission for artificial photosynthesis. Bismuth vanadate (BiVO4 , BVO) is a popular photoanode material for solar water splitting, but it faces tricky challenges in poor charge separation due to its modest charge transport properties. Here, a concept of the external electron transport layer (ETL) is first proposed and demonstrated its effectiveness in suppressing the charge recombination both in bulk and at surface. Specifically, a conformal carbon capsulation applied on BVO enables a remarkable increase in the charge separation efficiency, thanks to its critical roles in passivating surface charge-trapping sites and building external conductance channels. Through decorated with an oxygen evolution catalyst to accelerate surface charge transfer, the carbon-encased BVO (BVO@C) photoanode manifests durable water splitting over 120 h with a high current density of 5.9 mA cm-2 at 1.23 V versus the reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) under 1 sun irradiation (100 mW cm-2 , AM 1.5 G), which is an activity-stability trade-off record for single BVO light absorber. This work opens up a new avenue to steer charge separation via external ETL for solar fuel conversion.

| S-EPMC10837342 | biostudies-literature

Bandgap Tunable Ternary Cd x Sb2-y S3-? Nanocrystals for Solar Cell Applications.

Project description:We report the synthesis and photovoltaic performance of a new nonstoichiometric ternary metal sulfide alloyed semiconductor-Cd x Sb2-y S3-? nanocrystals prepared by the two-stage sequential ionic layer adsorption reaction technique. The synthesized Cd x Sb2-y S3-? nanocrystals retain the orthorhombic structure of the host Sb2S3 with Cd substituting a fraction (x = 0-0.15) of the cationic element Sb. The Cd x Sb2-y S3-? lattice expands relative to the host, Sb2S3, with its lattice constant a increasing linearly with Cd content x. Optical and external quantum efficiency (EQE) spectra revealed that the bandgap E g of Cd x Sb2-y S3-? decreased from 1.99 to 1.69 eV (i.e., 625-737 nm) as x increased from 0 to 0.15. Liquid-junction Cd x Sb2-y S3-? quantum dot-sensitized solar cells were fabricated using the polyiodide electrolyte. The best cell yielded a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 3.72% with the photovoltaic parameters of J sc = 15.97 mA/cm2, V oc = 0.50 V, and FF = 46.6% under 1 sun. The PCE further increased to 4.86%, a respectable value for a new solar material, under a reduced light intensity of 10% sun. The PCE (4.86%) and J sc (15.97 mA/cm2) are significantly larger than that (PCE = 1.8%, J sc = 8.55 mA/cm2) of the Sb2S3 host. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy showed that the ZnSe passivation coating increased the electron lifetime by three times. The EQE spectrum of Cd x Sb2-y S3-? has a maximal EQE of 82% at ? = 350 nm and covers the spectral range of 300-750 nm, which is significantly broader than that (300-625 nm) of the Sb2S3 host. The EQE-integrated current density yields a J ph of 11.76 mA/cm2. The tunable bandgap and a respectable PCE near 5% suggest that Cd x Sb2-y S3-? could be a potential candidate for a solar material.

| S-EPMC6963896 | biostudies-literature

Synthesis of thienyl analogues of PCBM and investigation of morphology of mixtures in P3HT.

Project description:Novel [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) analogues containing benzo[b]thiophene (3a, 3b) and thieno[3,2-b]thiophene (3c, 3d) were synthesized and characterized. The morphology of the thin films prepared from the mixtures of these methanofullerenes with regioregular poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) was investigated by AFM measurement and UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy. A solubility test of these methanofullerenes was performed by using dichloromethane as a solvent. es-TThCBM (3d) exhibited 1.4 times greater solubility in dichloromethane than PCBM.

| S-EPMC2568877 | biostudies-literature

Enhancing the Performances of P3HT:PCBM-MoS3-Based H2-Evolving Photocathodes with Interfacial Layers.

Project description:Organic semiconductors have great potential for producing hydrogen in a durable and economically viable manner because they rely on readily available materials and can be solution-processed over large areas. With the objective of building efficient hybrid organic-inorganic photoelectrochemical cells, we combined a noble-metal-free and solution-processable catalyst for proton reduction, MoS3, and a poly(3-hexylthiophene):phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (P3HT:PCBM) bulk heterojunction (BHJ). Different interfacial layers were investigated to improve the charge transfer between P3HT:PCBM and MoS3. Metallic Al/Ti interfacial layers led to an increase of the photocurrent by up to 8 mA cm(-2) at reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) potential with a 0.6 V anodic shift of the H2 evolution reaction onset potential, a value close to the open-circuit potential of the P3HT:PCBM solar cell. A 50-nm-thick C60 layer also works as an interfacial layer, with a current density reaching 1 mA cm(-2) at the RHE potential. Moreover, two recently highlighted1 figures-of-merit, measuring the ratio of power saved, Φsaved,ideal and Φsaved,NPAC, were evaluated and discussed to compare the performances of various photocathodes assessed in a three-electrode configuration. Φsaved,ideal and Φsaved,NPAC use the RHE and a nonphotoactive electrode with an identical catalyst as the dark electrode, respectively. They provide different information especially for differentiation of the roles of the photogenerating layer and catalyst. The best results were obtained with the Al/Ti metallic interlayer, with Φsaved,ideal and Φsaved,NPAC reaching 0.64% and 2.05%, respectively.

| S-EPMC4548795 | biostudies-literature

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

OmicsDI is an Elixir interoperability service. Learn more ›

Tweets

OmicsDI Databases

PRIDE
PeptideAtlas
MassIVE
JPOST Repository
Physiome Model Repository

EGA
EVA
ENA
LINCS
PAXDB
Cell Collective

MetaboLights
Metabolomics Workbench
MetabolomeExpress
GNPS
BioModels
FAIRDOMHub

ArrayExpress
dbGaP
ExpressionAtlas
GEO
NODE

Information

Databases
Help
API
Contact us
Code on GitHub
Terms of use
Submit Data