Molecular helices as electron acceptors in high-performance bulk heterojunction solar cells

Yu Zhong; M. Tuan Trinh; Rongsheng Chen; Geoffrey E. Purdum; Petr P. Khlyabich; Melda Sezen; Seokjoon Oh; Haiming Zhu; Brandon Fowler; Boyuan Zhang; Wei Wang; Chang Yong Nam; Matthew Y. Sfeir; Charles T. Black; Michael L. Steigerwald; Yueh Lin Loo; Fay Ng; X. Y. Zhu; Colin Nuckolls

doi:10.1038/ncomms9242

Molecular helices as electron acceptors in high-performance bulk heterojunction solar cells

Yu Zhong, M. Tuan Trinh, Rongsheng Chen, Geoffrey E. Purdum, Petr P. Khlyabich, Melda Sezen, Seokjoon Oh, Haiming Zhu, Brandon Fowler, Boyuan Zhang, Wei Wang, Chang Yong Nam, Matthew Y. Sfeir, Charles T. Black, Michael L. Steigerwald, Yueh Lin Loo, Fay Ng, X. Y. Zhu, Colin Nuckolls

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495 Scopus citations

Abstract

Despite numerous organic semiconducting materials synthesized for organic photovoltaics in the past decade, fullerenes are widely used as electron acceptors in highly efficient bulk-heterojunction solar cells. None of the non-fullerene bulk heterojunction solar cells have achieved efficiencies as high as fullerene-based solar cells. Design principles for fullerene-free acceptors remain unclear in the field. Here we report examples of helical molecular semiconductors as electron acceptors that are on par with fullerene derivatives in efficient solar cells. We achieved an 8.3% power conversion efficiency in a solar cell, which is a record high for non-fullerene bulk heterojunctions. Femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy revealed both electron and hole transfer processes at the donor-acceptor interfaces. Atomic force microscopy reveals a mesh-like network of acceptors with pores that are tens of nanometres in diameter for efficient exciton separation and charge transport. This study describes a new motif for designing highly efficient acceptors for organic solar cells.

Original language	English (US)
Article number	8242
Journal	Nature communications
Volume	6
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms9242
State	Published - Sep 18 2015

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

Chemistry(all)
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)
Physics and Astronomy(all)

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10.1038/ncomms9242

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Zhong, Y., Trinh, M. T., Chen, R., Purdum, G. E., Khlyabich, P. P., Sezen, M., Oh, S., Zhu, H., Fowler, B., Zhang, B., Wang, W., Nam, C. Y., Sfeir, M. Y., Black, C. T., Steigerwald, M. L., Loo, Y. L., Ng, F., Zhu, X. Y., & Nuckolls, C. (2015). Molecular helices as electron acceptors in high-performance bulk heterojunction solar cells. Nature communications, 6, [8242]. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms9242

@article{5e4703a95a534c929344abe5265ec3d1,

title = "Molecular helices as electron acceptors in high-performance bulk heterojunction solar cells",

abstract = "Despite numerous organic semiconducting materials synthesized for organic photovoltaics in the past decade, fullerenes are widely used as electron acceptors in highly efficient bulk-heterojunction solar cells. None of the non-fullerene bulk heterojunction solar cells have achieved efficiencies as high as fullerene-based solar cells. Design principles for fullerene-free acceptors remain unclear in the field. Here we report examples of helical molecular semiconductors as electron acceptors that are on par with fullerene derivatives in efficient solar cells. We achieved an 8.3% power conversion efficiency in a solar cell, which is a record high for non-fullerene bulk heterojunctions. Femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy revealed both electron and hole transfer processes at the donor-acceptor interfaces. Atomic force microscopy reveals a mesh-like network of acceptors with pores that are tens of nanometres in diameter for efficient exciton separation and charge transport. This study describes a new motif for designing highly efficient acceptors for organic solar cells.",

author = "Yu Zhong and Trinh, {M. Tuan} and Rongsheng Chen and Purdum, {Geoffrey E.} and Khlyabich, {Petr P.} and Melda Sezen and Seokjoon Oh and Haiming Zhu and Brandon Fowler and Boyuan Zhang and Wei Wang and Nam, {Chang Yong} and Sfeir, {Matthew Y.} and Black, {Charles T.} and Steigerwald, {Michael L.} and Loo, {Yueh Lin} and Fay Ng and Zhu, {X. Y.} and Colin Nuckolls",

note = "Funding Information: Primary support for this project was provided by the Chemical Sciences, Geosciences and Biosciences Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, US Department of Energy (DOE) under award number DE-FG02-01ER15264. X.Y.Z. acknowledges support by the US National Science Foundation grant DMR 1321405. This research used resources of the Center for Functional Nanomaterials, which is a US DOE Office of Science User Facility, at Brookhaven National Laboratory under contract number DE-SC0012704. Portions of this work was conducted at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS), which is supported by the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health/National Institute of General Medical Sciences under NSF awards DMR-0936384 and DMR-1332208. G.E.P. acknowledges Government support under and awarded by DoD, Air Force Office of Scientific Research, National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowship, 32 CFR 168a. We thank Columbia University{\textquoteright}s Shared Materials Characterization Lab for use of the equipment essential to the research. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2015 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.",

year = "2015",

month = sep,

day = "18",

doi = "10.1038/ncomms9242",

language = "English (US)",

volume = "6",

journal = "Nature Communications",

issn = "2041-1723",

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Zhong, Y, Trinh, MT, Chen, R, Purdum, GE, Khlyabich, PP, Sezen, M, Oh, S, Zhu, H, Fowler, B, Zhang, B, Wang, W, Nam, CY, Sfeir, MY, Black, CT, Steigerwald, ML, Loo, YL, Ng, F, Zhu, XY & Nuckolls, C 2015, 'Molecular helices as electron acceptors in high-performance bulk heterojunction solar cells', Nature communications, vol. 6, 8242. https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms9242

TY - JOUR

T1 - Molecular helices as electron acceptors in high-performance bulk heterojunction solar cells

AU - Zhong, Yu

AU - Trinh, M. Tuan

AU - Chen, Rongsheng

AU - Purdum, Geoffrey E.

AU - Khlyabich, Petr P.

AU - Sezen, Melda

AU - Oh, Seokjoon

AU - Zhu, Haiming

AU - Fowler, Brandon

AU - Zhang, Boyuan

AU - Wang, Wei

AU - Nam, Chang Yong

AU - Sfeir, Matthew Y.

AU - Black, Charles T.

AU - Steigerwald, Michael L.

AU - Loo, Yueh Lin

AU - Ng, Fay

AU - Zhu, X. Y.

AU - Nuckolls, Colin

N1 - Funding Information: Primary support for this project was provided by the Chemical Sciences, Geosciences and Biosciences Division, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, US Department of Energy (DOE) under award number DE-FG02-01ER15264. X.Y.Z. acknowledges support by the US National Science Foundation grant DMR 1321405. This research used resources of the Center for Functional Nanomaterials, which is a US DOE Office of Science User Facility, at Brookhaven National Laboratory under contract number DE-SC0012704. Portions of this work was conducted at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source (CHESS), which is supported by the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health/National Institute of General Medical Sciences under NSF awards DMR-0936384 and DMR-1332208. G.E.P. acknowledges Government support under and awarded by DoD, Air Force Office of Scientific Research, National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate (NDSEG) Fellowship, 32 CFR 168a. We thank Columbia University’s Shared Materials Characterization Lab for use of the equipment essential to the research. Publisher Copyright: © 2015 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.

PY - 2015/9/18

Y1 - 2015/9/18

N2 - Despite numerous organic semiconducting materials synthesized for organic photovoltaics in the past decade, fullerenes are widely used as electron acceptors in highly efficient bulk-heterojunction solar cells. None of the non-fullerene bulk heterojunction solar cells have achieved efficiencies as high as fullerene-based solar cells. Design principles for fullerene-free acceptors remain unclear in the field. Here we report examples of helical molecular semiconductors as electron acceptors that are on par with fullerene derivatives in efficient solar cells. We achieved an 8.3% power conversion efficiency in a solar cell, which is a record high for non-fullerene bulk heterojunctions. Femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy revealed both electron and hole transfer processes at the donor-acceptor interfaces. Atomic force microscopy reveals a mesh-like network of acceptors with pores that are tens of nanometres in diameter for efficient exciton separation and charge transport. This study describes a new motif for designing highly efficient acceptors for organic solar cells.

AB - Despite numerous organic semiconducting materials synthesized for organic photovoltaics in the past decade, fullerenes are widely used as electron acceptors in highly efficient bulk-heterojunction solar cells. None of the non-fullerene bulk heterojunction solar cells have achieved efficiencies as high as fullerene-based solar cells. Design principles for fullerene-free acceptors remain unclear in the field. Here we report examples of helical molecular semiconductors as electron acceptors that are on par with fullerene derivatives in efficient solar cells. We achieved an 8.3% power conversion efficiency in a solar cell, which is a record high for non-fullerene bulk heterojunctions. Femtosecond transient absorption spectroscopy revealed both electron and hole transfer processes at the donor-acceptor interfaces. Atomic force microscopy reveals a mesh-like network of acceptors with pores that are tens of nanometres in diameter for efficient exciton separation and charge transport. This study describes a new motif for designing highly efficient acceptors for organic solar cells.

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DO - 10.1038/ncomms9242

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SN - 2041-1723

VL - 6

JO - Nature Communications

JF - Nature Communications

M1 - 8242

ER -

Molecular helices as electron acceptors in high-performance bulk heterojunction solar cells

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