Role of the ZnO electron transport layer in PbS colloidal quantum dot solar cell yield

The development of lead sulfide (PbS) colloidal quantum dot (CQD) solar cells has led to significant power conversion efficiency (PCE) improvements in recent years, with record efficiencies now over 15%. Many of the recent advances in improving PCE have focused on improving the interface between the PbS CQD active layer and the zinc oxide (ZnO) electron transport layer (ETL). Proper optimization of the ZnO ETL also increases yield, or the percentage of functioning devices per fabrication run. Simultaneous improvements in both PCE and yield will be critical as the field approaches commercialization. This review highlights recent advances in the synthesis of ZnO ETLs and discusses the impact and critical role of ZnO synthesis conditions on the PCE and yield of PbS CQD solar cells.

Layer-by-Layer Organic Photovoltaic Solar Cells Using a Solution-Processed Silicon Phthalocyanine Non-Fullerene Acceptor

Silicon phthalocyanines (SiPcs) are promising, inexpensive, and easy to synthesize non-fullerene acceptor (NFA) candidates for all-solution sequentially processed layer-by-layer (LbL) organic photovoltaic (OPV) devices. Here, we report the use of bis(tri-n-butylsilyl oxide) SiPc ((3BS)2-SiPc) paired with poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and poly[(2,6-(4,8-bis(5-(2-ethylhexyl)thiophen-2-yl)-benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']dithiophene))-alt-(5,5-(1',3'-di-2-thienyl-5',7'-bis(2-ethylhexyl)benzo[1',2'-c:4',5'-c']dithiophene-4,8-dione))] (PBDB-T) donors in an LbL OPV structure. Using a direct architecture, P3HT/(3BS)2-SiPc LbL devices show power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) up to 3.0%, which is comparable or better than the corresponding bulk heterojunction (BHJ) devices with either (3BS)2-SiPc or PC61BM. PBDB-T/(3BS)2-SiPc LbL devices resulted in PCEs up to 3.3%, with an impressive open-circuit voltage (V oc) as high as 1.06 V, which is among the highest V oc obtained employing the LbL approach. We also compared devices incorporating vanadium oxide (VOx) or poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) as a hole transporting layer and found that VOx modified the donor layer morphology and led to improved V oc. Probing the composition as a function of film layer depths revealed a similar distribution of active material for both BHJ and LbL structures when using (3BS)2-SiPc as an NFA. These findings suggest that (3BS)2-SiPc is a promising NFA that can be processed using the LbL technique, an inherently easier fabrication methodology for large-area production of OPVs.

High-yielding Pd2(dba)3·C6H6-based four-fold Sonogashira coupling with selenophene-conjugated magnesium tetraethynylporphyrin for organic solar cells

A catalytic system using Pd2(dba)3·(C6H6)/PPh3/CuI for Sonogashira coupling was demonstrated to synthesize a selenophene-conjugated magnesium tetraethynylporphyrin Mg-TEP-(Se-DPP)4 (2a). The catalytic system enabled four-fold cross-coupling of the four terminal alkynes of magnesium tetraethynylporphyrin with bromoselenophene-tethered diketopyrrolopyrroles (DPPs) to produce the desired star-shaped 2a in 80% yield. This molecule shows higher solubility in organic solvents, more efficient visible and near-infrared region absorption, and a narrower band gap compared with reference thiophene-conjugated congeners. Two strategies, namely, selenium substitution and end-capping, were investigated to optimize bulk heterojunction structures in the active layers of organic solar cells. The optimized device based on 2a:PC61BM exhibited the highest PCE of 6.09% among the tested devices after solvent vapor annealing, owing to efficient exciton dissociation, balanced carrier mobility, and suppressed carrier recombination in the film's ordered morphology.

Performance and Uniformity Improvement in Ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se2 Solar Cells with a WO x Nanointerlayer at the Absorber/Transparent Back-Contact Interface

Thinning CIGSe absorber layer to less than 500 nm is desirable for reducing the cost per unit watt of photovoltaic-generated electricity, and also, the semitransparent solar cell based on such a thin absorber can be used in bifacial and superstrate configurations if the back electrode is transparent. In this study, a WO _x layer is inserted between Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ (CIGSe) absorber and tin-doped indium oxide back-contact to enhance the hole collection at the back electrode. A WO _x interlayer with a thickness of 6 nm is found to be optimum because it causes a ∼38% relative increase in the fill factor of a ∼450 nm thick CIGSe-based device compared to the reference device without a WO _x interlayer. While fixing the thickness of CIGSe, increasing the WO _x interlayer thickness to ≥6 nm results in decreases of solar cell parameters primarily because of the emergence of a GaO _x interfacial layer at the CIGSe/WO _x junction.

Hydroxyl-Terminated CuInS2-Based Quantum Dots: Potential Cathode Interfacial Modifiers for Efficient Inverted Polymer Solar Cells

The use of interfacial modifiers on cathode or anode layers can effectively reduce the recombination loss and thus have potential to enhance the device performance of polymer solar cells. In this work, we demonstrated that hydroxyl-terminated CuInS₂-based quantum dots could be potential cathode interfacial modifiers on ZnO layer for inverted polymer solar cells. By casting of a thin film of CuInS₂-based quantum dots onto ZnO layer, the controlled devices show obvious enhancements of open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current, and fill factor. With an optimized interfacial layer with ∼7 nm thickness, an improvement of power conversion efficiency up to 16% is obtained and the optimized power conversion efficiency of PTB7-based (PTB7: poly[[4,8-bis[(2-ethylhexyl)oxy]benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']dithiophene-2,6-diyl][3-fluoro-2-[(2-ethylhexyl) carbonyl] thieno[3,4-b] thiophenediyl]]) polymer solar cells approaches 8.51%. Detailed analysis shows that the performance enhancement can be explained to the improved light absorption, modified work function, reduced surface roughness, and the increased electron transfer of ZnO cathode interlayer.

Interface Structure of MoO3 on Organic Semiconductors

We have systematically studied interface structure formed by vapor-phase deposition of typical transition metal oxide MoO₃ on organic semiconductors. Eight organic hole transport materials have been used in this study. Ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy are used to measure the evolution of the physical, chemical and electronic structure of the interfaces at various stages of MoO₃ deposition on these organic semiconductor surfaces. For the interface physical structure, it is found that MoO₃ diffuses into the underlying organic layer, exhibiting a trend of increasing diffusion with decreasing molecular molar mass. For the interface chemical structure, new carbon and molybdenum core-level states are observed, as a result of interfacial electron transfer from organic semiconductor to MoO₃. For the interface electronic structure, energy level alignment is observed in agreement with the universal energy level alignment rule of molecules on metal oxides, despite deposition order inversion.

3-Dimensional ZnO/CdS nanocomposite with high mobility as an efficient electron transport layer for inverted polymer solar cells

A 3-dimensional ZnO/CdS nanocomposite with high mobility as an electron transport layer boosts device efficiency to 8.0% for inverted polymer solar cells.

The Impact of Grain Alignment of the Electron Transporting Layer on the Performance of Inverted Bulk Heterojunction Solar Cells

This report presents a new strategy for improving solar cell power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) through grain alignment and morphology control of the ZnO electron transport layer (ETL) prepared by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The systematic control over the ETL's grain alignment and thickness is shown, by varying the deposition pressure and operating substrate temperature during the deposition. Notably, a high PCE of 6.9%, short circuit current density (J(sc)) of 12.8 mA cm(-2), open circuit voltage (V(oc)) of 910 mV, and fill factor of 59% are demonstrated using the poly(benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']dithiophene-thieno[3,4-c]pyrrole-4,6-dione):[6,6]-phenyl-C(71) -butyric acid methyl ester polymer blend with ETLs prepared at room temperature exhibiting oriented and aligned rod-like ZnO grains. Increasing the deposition temperature during the ZnO sputtering induces morphological cleavage of the rod-like ZnO grains and therefore reduced conductivity from 7.2 × 10(-13) to ≈1.7 × 10(-14) S m(-1) and PCE from 6.9% to 4.28%. An investigation of the charge carrier dynamics by femtosecond (fs) transient absorption spectroscopy with broadband capability reveals clear evidence of faster carrier recombination for a ZnO layer deposited at higher temperature, which is consistent with the conductivity and device performance.

PM-IRRAS Determination of Molecular Orientation of Phosphonic Acid Self-Assembled Monolayers on Indium Zinc Oxide

Self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) of phosphonic acids (PAs) on transparent conductive oxide (TCO) surfaces can facilitate improvement in TCO/organic semiconductor interface properties. When ordered PA SAMs are formed on oxide substrates, interface dipole and electronic structure are affected by the functional group properties, orientation, and binding modes of the modifiers. Choosing octylphosphonic acid (OPA), F13-octylphosphonic acid (F13OPA), pentafluorophenyl phosphonic acid (F5PPA), benzyl phosphonic acid (BnPA), and pentafluorobenzyl phosphonic acid (F5BnPA) as a representative group of modifiers, we report polarization modulation-infrared reflection-absorption spectroscopy (PM-IRRAS) of binding and molecular orientation on indium-doped zinc oxide (IZO) substrates. Considerable variability in molecular orientation and binding type is observed with changes in PA functional group. OPA exhibits partially disordered alkyl chains but on average the chain axis is tilted ∼57° from the surface normal. F13OPA tilts 26° with mostly tridentate binding. The F5PPA ring is tilted 23° from the surface normal with a mixture of bidentate and tridentate binding; the BnPA ring tilts 31° from normal with a mixture of bidentate and tridentate binding, and the F5BnPA ring tilts 58° from normal with a majority of bidentate with some tridenate binding. These trends are consistent with what has been observed previously for the effects of fluorination on orientation of phosphonic acid modifiers. These results from PM-IRRAS are correlated with recent results on similar systems from near-edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) and density functional theory (DFT) calculations. Overall, these results indicate that both surface binding geometry and intermolecular interactions play important roles in dictating the orientation of PA modifiers on TCO surfaces. This work also establishes PM-IRRAS as a routine method for SAM orientation determination on complex oxide substrates.

Aerosol-assisted chemical vapor deposition of tungsten oxide films and nanorods from oxo tungsten(VI) fluoroalkoxide precursors

Aerosol-assisted chemical vapor deposition (AACVD) of WOx was demonstrated using the oxo tungsten(VI) fluoroalkoxide single-source precursors, WO[OCCH3(CF3)2]4 and WO[OC(CH3)2CF3]4. Substoichiometric amorphous tungsten oxide thin films were grown on indium tin oxide (ITO) substrates in nitrogen at low deposition temperature (100-250 °C). At growth temperatures above 300 °C, the W18O49 monoclinic crystalline phase was observed. The surface morphology and roughness, visible light transmittance, electrical conductivity, and work function of the tungsten oxide materials are reported. The solvent and carrier gas minimally affected surface morphology and composition at low deposition temperature; however, material crystallinity varied with solvent choice at higher temperatures. The work function of the tungsten oxide thin films grown between 150 and 250 °C was determined to be in the range 5.0 to 5.7 eV, according to ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS).

Overcoming Coulombic Traps: Geometry and Electronic Characterizations of Light-Induced Separated Spins at the Bulk Heterojunction Interface

Recent progress is overviewed on experimental elucidations of fundamental molecular functions of the light-energy conversions by the photoactive layers of the organic photovoltalic (OPV) cells by means of the time-resolved electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. Positions and orientations of the unpaired electrons and electronic coupling matrix elements are clarified in photoinduced, primary charge-separated (CS) states. Connections between the molecular geometries and the electronic couplings have been characterized for the initial CS states to elucidate how the structure, orbital delocalization, and molecular libration play roles on exothermic carrier dissociation via a vibrationally relaxed charge-transfer complex with prevention of the energy-wasting charge recombination. Superior functions to biological molecules are presented for the efficient photocurrent generations induced by orbital delocalization and by shallow trap depths at polymer-stacking domains. The above structural and electronic characteristics of the primary electron-hole pairs are essential to evaluations, designs, and developments of the efficient solar cells using organic molecules.

Improved efficiency and stability of organic photovoltaic device using UV-ozone treated ZnO anode buffer

Improved PCE (from 2.5 to 3.2%) and stability of SubPc/C₆₀-based OPV device using an UV-ozone treated ZnO anode buffer.

Effect of fluorination on the performance of poly(thieno[2,3-f]benzofuran-co-benzothiadiazole) derivatives

Three polymers named PTBFBT-0F, PTBFBT-1F, PTBFBT-2F were synthesized, and the effects of the different numbers of fluorine atoms on the photophysics and photovoltaic properties were investigated. A PCE of 5% with PTBFBT-2F as the donor was obtained.

The influence of polar (0001) zinc oxide (ZnO) on the structure and morphology of vanadyl phthalocyanine (VOPc)

Metal oxide thin films are increasingly utilized in small molecular organic photovoltaic devices to facilitate electron transport and injection.

Understanding the selective etching of electrodeposited ZnO nanorods

ZnO nanotubes were prepared by selective dissolution of electrodeposited nanorods. The effect of solution pH, rod morphology, and chloride ion concentration on the dissolution mechanism was studied. The selective etching was rationalized in terms of the surface energy of the different ZnO crystal faces and reactant diffusion. The nanorod diameter and chloride concentration are the most influential parameters on the dissolution mechanism because they control homogeneous dissolution or selective etching of the (110) and (002) surfaces. Bulk solution pH only has an effect on the rate of dissolution. By accurate control of the dissolution process, the nanomorphology can be tailored, and the formation of rods with a thin diameter (10-20 nm), cavity, or ultra-thin-walled tubes (2-5 nm) can be achieved.

The effect of surface hydrogenation of metal oxides on the nanomorphology and the charge generation efficiency of polymer blend solar cells

In this work, the effect of surface hydrogenation of different metal oxides, in particular molybdenum and tungsten oxides widely used to enhance hole extraction and zinc and titanium oxides widely used to enhance electron extraction, on the nanomorphology and the charge generation efficiency of polymer blend solar cells is investigated. It was found that photoactive layers based on blends using different polymers, in particular poly(3-hexythiophene) (P3HT) and poly[(9-(1-octylnonyl)-9H-carbazole-2,7-diyl)-2,5-thiophenediyl-2,1,3-benzothiadiazole-4,7-diyl-2,5-thiophenediyl] (PCDTBT), which normally differ in both morphology and electronic structure, benefited, for both polymers, from deposition on metal oxides with high surface hydrogen content, in the sense that they exhibited improved crystallinity/order as revealed from X-ray diffraction, UV-vis absorption and elipsometric measurements. As a result, increased charge generation efficiencies and reduced recombination losses were measured in solar cells using metal oxides with highly hydrogenated surfaces at bottom electrodes and based on blends of either P3HT or PCDTBT, with a fullerene acceptor, as was verified by transient photocurrent measurements. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of those cells reached values of 4.5% and 7.2%, respectively, an increase of about 30% compared with the cells using metal oxides with low surface hydrogen content.

High voltage hybrid organic photovoltaics using a zinc oxide acceptor and a subphthalocyanine donor

The voltage of ZnO/SubPc hybrid devices was enhanced to 1.18 eV by optimising the ZnO thin film processing conditions

Mapping nanoscale variations in photochemical damage of polymer/fullerene solar cells with dissipation imaging

We use frequency-modulated electrostatic force microscopy to track changes in cantilever quality factor (Q) as a function of photochemical damage in a model organic photovoltaic system poly[[4,8-bis[(2-ethylhexyl)oxy]benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']dithiophene-2,6-diyl][3-fluoro-2-[(2-ethylhexyl)carbonyl]thieno[3,4-b]thiophenediyl]] (PTB7) and 3'H-cyclopropa[8,25][5,6]fullerene-C71-D5h(6)-3'-butanoic acid, 3'-phenyl-, methyl ester (PC71BM). We correlate local Q factor imaging with macroscopic device performance and show that, for this system, changes in cantilever Q correlate well with changes in external quantum efficiency and can thus be used to monitor local photochemical damage over the entire functional lifetime of a PTB7:PC71BM solar cell. We explore how Q imaging is affected by the choice of cantilever resonance frequency. Finally, we use Q imaging to elucidate the differences in the evolution of nanoscale structure in the photochemical damage occurring in PTB7:PC71BM solar cells processed with and without the solvent additive 1,8-diiodooctane (DIO). We show that processing with DIO not only yields a preferable morphology for uniform performance across the surface of the device but also enhances the stability of PTB7:PC71BM solar cells-an effect that can be predicted based on the local Q images.

Role of thin n-type metal-oxide interlayers in inverted organic solar cells

We have investigated the photovoltaic properties of inverted solar cells comprising a bulk heterojunction film of poly(3-hexylthiophene) and phenyl-C(61)-butyric acid methyl ester, sandwiched between an indium-tin-oxide/Al-doped zinc oxide (ZnO-Al) front, and tungsten oxide/aluminum back electrodes. The inverted solar cells convert photons to electrons at an external quantum efficiency (EQE) exceeding 70%. This is a 10-15% increase over EQEs of conventional solar cells. The increase in EQE is not fully explained by the difference in the optical transparency of electrodes, interference effects due to an optical spacer effect of the metal-oxide electrode buffer layers, or variation in charge generation profile. We propose that a large additional splitting of excited states at the ZnO-Al/polymer interface leads to the considerably large photocurrent yield in inverted cells. Our finding provides new insights into the benefits of n-type metal-oxide interlayers in bulk heterojunction solar cells, namely the splitting of excited states and conduction of free electrons simultaneously.