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Peng Z, Xian K, Cui Y, Qi Q, Liu J, Xu Y, Chai Y, Yang C, Hou J, Geng Y, Ye L. Thermoplastic Elastomer Tunes Phase Structure and Promotes Stretchability of High-Efficiency Organic Solar Cells. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2021; 33:e2106732. [PMID: 34636085 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202106732] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2021] [Revised: 09/17/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Top-performance organic solar cells (OSCs) consisting of conjugated polymer donors and nonfullerene small molecule acceptors (NF-SMAs) deliver rapid increases in efficiencies. Nevertheless, many of the polymer donors exhibit high stiffness and small molecule acceptors are very brittle, which limit their applications in wearable devices. Here, a simple and effective strategy is reported to improve the stretchability and reduce the stiffness of high-efficiency polymer:NF-SMA blends and simultaneously maintain the high efficiency by incorporating a low-cost commercial thermoplastic elastomer, polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene-ran-butylene)-block-polystyrene (SEBS). The microstructure, mechanical properties, and photovoltaic performance of PM6:N3 with varied SEBS contents and the molecular weight dependence of SEBS on microstructure and mechanical properties are thoroughly characterized. This strategy for mechanical performance improvement exhibits excellent applicability in some other OSC blend systems, e.g., PBQx-TF:eC9-2Cl and PBDB-T:ITIC. More crucially, the elastic modulus of such complex ternary blends can be nicely predicted by a mechanical model. Therefore, incorporating thermoplastic elastomers is a widely applicable and cost-effective strategy to improve mechanical properties of nonfullerene OSCs and beyond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhongxiang Peng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Composite and Functional Materials, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Optics, Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, 130033, China
| | - Kaihu Xian
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Composite and Functional Materials, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
| | - Yong Cui
- Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, CAS Research/Education Center for Excellence in Molecular Sciences, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Qingchun Qi
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Composite and Functional Materials, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
| | - Junwei Liu
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Composite and Functional Materials, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Optics, Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, 130033, China
| | - Ye Xu
- Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, CAS Research/Education Center for Excellence in Molecular Sciences, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Yubo Chai
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Composite and Functional Materials, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
| | - Chunming Yang
- Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201204, China
| | - Jianhui Hou
- Beijing National Laboratory for Molecular Sciences, State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry, CAS Research/Education Center for Excellence in Molecular Sciences, Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China
| | - Yanhou Geng
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Composite and Functional Materials, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
- Joint School of National University of Singapore and Tianjin University, International Campus of Tianjin University, Binhai New City, Fuzhou, 350207, China
| | - Long Ye
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Tianjin Key Laboratory of Composite and Functional Materials, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300350, China
- State Key Laboratory of Applied Optics, Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, 130033, China
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Sun T, Song R, Balar N, Sen P, Kline RJ, O'Connor BT. Impact of Substrate Characteristics on Stretchable Polymer Semiconductor Behavior. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2019; 11:3280-3289. [PMID: 30592202 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b16457] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Stretchable conductive polymer films are required to survive not only large tensile strain but also stay functional after the reduction in applied strain. In the deformation process, the elastomer substrate that is typically employed plays a critical role in response to the polymer film. In this study, we examine the role of a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) elastomer substrate on the ability to achieve stretchable PDPP-4T films. In particular, we consider the adhesion and near-surface modulus of the PDMS tuned through UV/ozone (UVO) treatment on the competition between film wrinkling and plastic deformation. We also consider the role of PDMS tension on the stability of films under cyclic strain. We find that increasing the near-surface modulus of the PDMS and maintaining the PDMS in tension throughout the cyclic strain process promote plastic deformation over film wrinkling. In addition, the UVO treatment increases film adhesion to the PDMS resulting in a significantly reduced film folding and delamination. For a 20 min UVO-treated PDMS, we show that a PDPP-4T film root-mean-square roughness is consistently below 3 nm for up to 100 strain cycles with a strain range of 40%. In addition, although the film is plastically deforming, the microstructural order is largely stable as probed by grazing incidence X-ray scattering and UV-visible spectroscopy. These results highlight the importance of neighboring elastomer characteristics on the ability to achieve stretchable polymer semiconductors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianlei Sun
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering , North Carolina State University , Raleigh , North Carolina 27695 , United States
| | - Runqiao Song
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering , North Carolina State University , Raleigh , North Carolina 27695 , United States
| | - Nrup Balar
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering , North Carolina State University , Raleigh , North Carolina 27695 , United States
| | - Pratik Sen
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering , North Carolina State University , Raleigh , North Carolina 27695 , United States
| | - R Joseph Kline
- Materials Science and Engineering Division , National Institute of Standards and Technology , Gaithersburg , Maryland 20899 , United States
| | - Brendan T O'Connor
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering , North Carolina State University , Raleigh , North Carolina 27695 , United States
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Olson IA, Shtukenberg AG, Kahr B, Ward MD. Dislocations in molecular crystals. REPORTS ON PROGRESS IN PHYSICS. PHYSICAL SOCIETY (GREAT BRITAIN) 2018; 81:096501. [PMID: 30059351 DOI: 10.1088/1361-6633/aac303] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Dislocations in molecular crystals remain terra incognita. Owing to the complexity of molecular structure, dislocations in molecular crystals can be difficult to understand using only the foundational concepts devised over decades for hard materials. Herein, we review the generation, structure, and physicochemical consequences of dislocations in molecular crystals. Unlike metals, ceramics, and semiconductors, molecular crystals are often characterized by flexible building units of low symmetry, thereby limiting analysis, complicating modeling, and prompting new approaches to elucidate their role in crystallography from growth to mechanics. Such considerations affect applications ranging from plastic electronics and mechanical actuators to the tableting of pharmaceuticals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel A Olson
- Department of Chemistry and Molecular Design Institute, New York University, New York City, NY 10003, United States of America
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Qian Y, Zhang X, Xie L, Qi D, Chandran BK, Chen X, Huang W. Stretchable Organic Semiconductor Devices. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2016; 28:9243-9265. [PMID: 27573694 DOI: 10.1002/adma.201601278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2016] [Revised: 06/21/2016] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Stretchable electronics are essential for the development of intensely packed collapsible and portable electronics, wearable electronics, epidermal and bioimplanted electronics, 3D surface compliable devices, bionics, prosthesis, and robotics. However, most stretchable devices are currently based on inorganic electronics, whose high cost of fabrication and limited processing area make it difficult to produce inexpensive, large-area devices. Therefore, organic stretchable electronics are highly attractive due to many advantages over their inorganic counterparts, such as their light weight, flexibility, low cost and large-area solution-processing, the reproducible semiconductor resources, and the easy tuning of their properties via molecular tailoring. Among them, stretchable organic semiconductor devices have become a hot and fast-growing research field, in which great advances have been made in recent years. These fantastic advances are summarized here, focusing on stretchable organic field-effect transistors, light-emitting devices, solar cells, and memory devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Qian
- Key Laboratory for Organic Electronics and Information Displays and Institute of Advanced Materials (IAM), Jiangsu National Synergetic Innovation Center for Advanced Materials (SICAM), Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications, 9 Wenyuan Road, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Xinwen Zhang
- Key Laboratory for Organic Electronics and Information Displays and Institute of Advanced Materials (IAM), Jiangsu National Synergetic Innovation Center for Advanced Materials (SICAM), Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications, 9 Wenyuan Road, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Linghai Xie
- Key Laboratory for Organic Electronics and Information Displays and Institute of Advanced Materials (IAM), Jiangsu National Synergetic Innovation Center for Advanced Materials (SICAM), Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications, 9 Wenyuan Road, Nanjing, 210023, China
| | - Dianpeng Qi
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, 639798, Singapore
| | - Bevita K Chandran
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, 639798, Singapore
| | - Xiaodong Chen
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, 639798, Singapore
| | - Wei Huang
- Key Laboratory for Organic Electronics and Information Displays and Institute of Advanced Materials (IAM), Jiangsu National Synergetic Innovation Center for Advanced Materials (SICAM), Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications, 9 Wenyuan Road, Nanjing, 210023, China
- Key Laboratory of Flexible Electronics (KLOFE) and Institute of Advanced Materials (IAM), Jiangsu National Synergetic Innovation Center for Advanced Materials (SICAM), Nanjing Tech University, 30 South Puzhu Road, Nanjing, 211816, China
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