Reaction mechanism for the photopolymerization of solid fullerene C60

The role of spin in the degradation of organic photovoltaics

Stability is now a critical factor in the commercialization of organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices. Both extrinsic stability to oxygen and water and intrinsic stability to light and heat in inert conditions must be achieved. Triplet states are known to be problematic in both cases, leading to singlet oxygen production or fullerene dimerization. The latter is thought to proceed from unquenched singlet excitons that have undergone intersystem crossing (ISC). Instead, we show that in bulk heterojunction (BHJ) solar cells the photo-degradation of C60 via photo-oligomerization occurs primarily via back-hole transfer (BHT) from a charge-transfer state to a C60 excited triplet state. We demonstrate this to be the principal pathway from a combination of steady-state optoelectronic measurements, time-resolved electron paramagnetic resonance, and temperature-dependent transient absorption spectroscopy on model systems. BHT is a much more serious concern than ISC because it cannot be mitigated by improved exciton quenching, obtained for example by a finer BHJ morphology. As BHT is not specific to fullerenes, our results suggest that the role of electron and hole back transfer in the degradation of BHJs should also be carefully considered when designing stable OPV devices.

Thermal magnetoresistance and spin thermopower in C60 dimers

We theoretically investigate the spin-related thermoelectric properties in C₆₀ dimer bridged between zigzag graphene nanoribbon electrodes using the tight-binding model, equilibrium Green's function method, and Landauer-Büttiker transport formalism. By applying a thermal gradient, our proposed device could generate a notable spin thermopower. Moreover, by switching the magnetization of the electrodes, different spin currents, and giant thermal magnetoresistance (MR) can be achieved. Interestingly, various types of C₆₀ dimers also produce a thermal MR, which is sensitively modified by the gate voltages.

Spin density transfer from guest to host in endohedral heterofullerene dimers

The endohedral heterofullerenes (B@C₅₉B)₂, (B@C₅₉N)₂, (N@C₅₉B)₂ and (B@C₅₉N–N@C₅₉B) are investigated using dispersion corrected density functional theory.

Two-Dimensional Fullerene Assembly from an Exfoliated van der Waals Template

Two-dimensional (2D) materials are commonly prepared by exfoliating bulk layered van der Waals crystals. The creation of synthetic 2D materials from bottom-up methods is an important challenge as their structural flexibility will enable chemists to tune the materials properties. A 2D material was assembled using C₆₀ as a polymerizable monomer. The C₆₀ building blocks are first assembled into a layered solid using a molecular cluster as structure director. The resulting hierarchical crystal is used as a template to polymerize its C₆₀ monolayers, which can be exfoliated down to 2D crystalline nanosheets. Derived from the parent template, the 2D structure is composed of a layer of inorganic cluster, sandwiched between two monolayers of polymerized C₆₀ . The nanosheets can be transferred onto solid substrates and depolymerized by heating. Electronic absorption spectroscopy reveals an optical gap of 0.25 eV, narrower than that of the bulk parent crystalline solid.

Deciphering the metal-C60 interface in optoelectronic devices: evidence for C60 reduction by vapor deposited Al

The formation of interfacial midgap states due to the reduction of buckminsterfullerene (C60) to amorphous carbon upon subsequent vapor deposition of Al is confirmed using Raman spectroscopy and X-ray, ultraviolet, and inverse photoemission spectroscopies. We demonstrate that vapor deposition of Al results in n-type doping of C60 due to an electron transfer from Al to the LUMO of C60, resulting in the formation of midgap states near the C60 Fermi level. Raman spectroscopy in ultrahigh vacuum clearly identifies the presence of the C60 anion radical (C60(•-)) as well as amorphous carbon created by further degradation of C60(•-). In contrast, the interface formed by vapor deposition of Ag shows only a slight Ag/C60 interfacial charge displacement with no evidence for complete metal-to-C60 electron transfer to form the anion radical or its further degradation products. These results confirm previous speculations of metal-induced chemical damage of C60 films after Al deposition, which is widely suspected of decreasing charge collection efficiency in OPVs, and provide key insight into charge collection at metal/organic interfaces in such devices.

Fullerene nanowires as a versatile platform for organic electronics

The development of organic semiconducting nanowires that act as charge carrier transport pathways in flexible and lightweight nanoelectronics is a major scientific challenge. We report on the fabrication of fullerene nanowires that is universally applicable to its derivatives (pristine C₆₀, methanofullerenes of C₆₁ and C₇₁, and indene C₆₀ bis-adduct), realized by the single particle nanofabrication technique (SPNT). Nanowires with radii of 8–11 nm were formed via a chain polymerization reaction induced by a high-energy ion beam. Fabrication of a poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT): [6,6]-phenyl C₆₁ butyric acid methyl ester (PC₆₁BM) bulk heterojunction organic photovoltaic cell including PC₆₁BM nanowires with precisely-controlled length and density demonstrates how application of this methodology can improve the power conversion efficiency of these inverted cells. The proposed technique provides a versatile platform for the fabrication of continuous and uniform n-type fullerene nanowires towards a wide range of organic electronics applications.

Experimental and theoretical investigations of the thermodynamic stability of Ba-c(60) and K-C(60) compound clusters

A novel experimental set-up was used to study superstable (magic) Ba-C(60) and K-C(60) compound clusters. The most stable systems observed cannot be rationalized by simple electronic or by geometrical shell filling arguments. Annealing the clusters past the temperature necessary for the fragmentation of the initial metastable clusters formed at the source reveals information about their thermodynamic stability. Higher temperatures yield larger species, suggesting that similar experiments may be used to rationally produce nanoscale clusters with highly desirable properties. Density functional calculations reveal ionic (K, Ba) and covalent (Ba) bonding between C(60) and the metal atoms. The entropic contribution to the Gibbs free energy is shown to be essential in determining absolute and relative cluster stabilities. In particular, we demonstrate that at higher temperatures the entropy favors the formation of larger clusters. A simple criterion which may be used to determine the absolute and relative stabilities of general multicomponent clusters is proposed.

Stability of silicon-doped C60 dimers

A theoretical investigation on the structure, stability, and thermal behaviors of the smallest polymeric units, the dimers, formed from substitutionally Si-doped fullerenes is presented. A density functional based nonorthogonal tight-binding model has been employed for describing the interatomic interactions. The study focuses on those polymeric structures which involve Si-Si or Si-C interfullerene bonds. The binding energy of the dimers increases with their Si content from about 0.25 eV in C(60)-C(60) to about 4.5 eV in C(58)Si(2)-C(58)Si(2). Moreover, the C(59)SiC(59) dimer, linked through the sharing of the Si atom between the two fullerenes, has been also considered. Upon heating, the dimers eventually fragment into their constituent fullerene units. The fragmentation temperature correlates with the strength of the interfullerene bonds. C(58)Si(2)-C(58)Si(2) exhibits a higher thermal stability (fragmentation temperature of approximately 500 K) than the pure carbon C(60)-C(60) dimer (with a fragmentation temperature of approximately 325 K). Given the higher structural and thermal stabilities of the Si-doped fullerene dimers, the authors propose the use of substitutionally Si-doped fullerenes as the basic units for constructing new fullerene-based polymers.

First-principles study of electron-conduction properties of C60 bridges

The electron-conduction properties of fullerene-based nanostructures suspended between electrodes are examined by first-principles calculations based on the density functional theory. The electron conductivity of the C60-dimer bridge is low owing to the constraint of the junction of the molecules. When the fullerenes are doped electrons by being inserted Li atoms into the cages, the unoccupied state around the junction is filled and the conductivity can be significantly improved.

Enhanced photoinduced oligomerization of fullerene via radical coupling between fullerene radical cation and radical anion using 9-mesityl-10-methylacridinium ion

Photocatalytic oligomerization of fullerene in toluene-acetonitrile solution occurs efficiently via electron-transfer reactions with the photogenerated electron-transfer state of 9-mesityl-10-methylacridinium ion, followed by the radical coupling reaction between fullerene radical cation and radical anion.

Structure of the Crystalline C60 Photopolymer and the Isolation of Its Cycloadduct Components

We produced C60 photopolymer in gram quantity by a new monomer recycling method and extracted its soluble components. The most abundant components, the (2 + 2) cycloadduct dimer, C120, and several oligomers were isolated by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Three different C180 isomers were identified on the basis of their formation and decomposition reactions. The crystal structure of the insoluble photopolymer is face-centered cubic (fcc) with a contracted lattice parameter relative to the pristine C60. The lattice parameter and the amounts of soluble oligomers depend on the preparation temperature. We explain this variation with a topochemical model of photopolymerization: The geometrical conditions allow the formation of only linear or planar oligomers in the triangular or square sublattices. Competing reactions in the intersecting planes prevent the formation of large oligomers. The lattice contraction is proportional to the number of cycloadduct bonds.

Facile Synthesis of a Fullerene-Barbituric Acid Derivative and Supramolecular Catalysis of Its Photoinduced Dimerization

A straightforward synthesis of a fullerene derivative appended with a barbituric acid molecular recognition motif is described. The presence of two nonself-complementary hydrogen-bonding sites is shown to be conducive to the construction of supramolecular assemblies. In the presence of a melamine derivative possessing complementary hydrogen-bonding sites, enhanced efficiency toward photodimerization of the fullerene moiety is observed. This represents the first example of intermolecular photodimerization of a fullerene derivative in homogeneous solution, made possible by the formation of supramolecular assemblies in which the fullerenes are maintained in close proximity.