Fullerene Derivatives Kirsten Parratt, Loo Lab, 11/9/2010 How Molecular Structure Influences Device Performance in Organic Solar Cells Fullerene Derivatives Kirsten Parratt, Loo Lab, 11/9/2010
How it works Photons absorbed by the organic compounds in the active layer create an exciton which diffuses randomly Upon reaching the acceptor and donor interface, the electron dissociates from the hole Both electron and hole are transported to their respective electrode Al Al Al ITO ITO ITO
Why Organic Solar Cells? An alternative to silicon solar cells: Easier manufacturing Low temperature processing Solution processing Lower costs Flexible substrates
Electron Acceptor and Donor P3HT/PCBM cells currently have one of the highest efficiencies (~5-6%) PCBM: [6,6]phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester, acceptor small molecule P3HT: Poly(3-hexylthiophene), donor polymer LUMO 3.7 eV 5.1 eV Al P3HT P3HT ITO PCBM PCBM Al HOMO ITO Light
Electron Acceptor and Donor P3HT/PCBM cells currently have one of the highest efficiencies (~5-6%) PCBM: [6,6]phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester, acceptor small molecule P3HT: Poly(3-hexylthiophene), donor polymer Charge transport through pi orbitals Light 3.7 eV 5.1 eV Al P3HT ITO PCBM PCBM P3HT
Electron Acceptor and Donor P3HT/PCBM cells currently have one of the highest efficiencies (~5-6%) PCBM: [6,6]phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester, acceptor small molecule P3HT: Poly(3-hexylthiophene), donor polymer 3.7 eV 5.1 eV Al P3HT ITO PCBM PCBM P3HT
Electron Acceptor and Donor P3HT/PCBM cells currently have one of the highest efficiencies (~5-6%) PCBM: [6,6]phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester, acceptor small molecule P3HT: Poly(3-hexylthiophene), donor polymer 3.7 eV 5.1 eV P3HT Al ITO PCBM PCBM P3HT
Overview of Morphology-Length Scales Molecular ordering Crystal size Phase separation
Structure/Function Relationship Systematically altered fullerene for better packing How the molecules pack effects device performance CF3-TNPS-Tet-Fu TNPS-Tet-Fu TES-Tet-Fu Large Side group Small Side group J. Anthony
Desired Stacking Bad transfer Good transfer Contact between fullerenes should have better charge transfer Fullerene-acene contact will be worse Best packing comes from the closest fullerenes J. Anthony
Stacking J. Anthony Bad transfer Good transfer CF3-TNPS-Tet-Fu TES-Tet-Fu Good Transport Bad Transport J. Anthony
Single Carrier Diodes Composed of only a fullerene No photocurrent generation Measure the transport of charge through the active layer ITO Fullerene Pedot Al
Mobility ue= (J0.5/V)2* L3*e0*er*8/9 e0-permitivity of free space = 8.85418782 × 10-12 m-3 kg-1 s4 A2 er-dielectric constant = 3.9 - Measure of how fast charges can transport through the layer
Efficiency Jsc Efficiency = max power 100 mW/cm2 Maximum power Voc
Bilayer Comparison Jsc shows same trend as mobilities in SCD CF3-TNPS-Tet-Fu shows worst Jsc and device performance Efficiency (%) 3.3E-2 1.6E-3 4.77E-5
Conclusion The observed mobilities and efficiencies show the same trends Most likely this trends correlates to the size of the side group CF3-TNPS-Tet-Fu TNPS-Tet-Fu TES-Tet-Fu Large Side group Low efficiency Small Side group High efficiency
Future Work Crystallized derivatives would allow us to determine if the molecules are packing as planned More through testing of solvent vapor and thermal annealling Thermal evaporation of the fullerene layer
Acknowledgements Professor Loo Stephanie Lee Loo lab PEI