Developments

in
Organic Solar Cells
Akinola Oyedele
MSE 556 Materials for Energy
Outline
Background
Evolution
Limitations
Future Considerations
Conclusion

Konarka Technologies Inc
Cambridge University
Background
Conducting Polymers
In 1977, discovery of electrical conductivity in doped
polyacetylene
Nobel prize in chemistry in 2000 to Alan Heeger, Alan McDiarmid
and Hideki Shirakawa
1986, Organic photovoltaic cell OPV (Ching W Tang, Kodak)
1986, Orgaic field-effect transistor OFET (H Koezuka, Mitsubishi)
1987, Organic light-emitting diode OLED (Ching W Tang, Kodak)
Photo credit: NobelPrize.org
Chemical structures of conducting
polymers
Daniel J.Burke Energy Environ. Sci., 2013, 6, 2053
Advantages
Cheap, low-temperature deposition techniques (e.g roll-to-roll, printing)
Environmental-friendly materials; Abundant and Cheap
Can be semitransparent or aesthetically pleasing
Ultra-flexible and even stretchable,
Lightweight
Low-light condition
Color-tunable
Companies Involved
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MirozECd8S8
2010, Cambridge, UK
2006, Dresden, Germany
2006, El Monte, California
2001 (bankrupted 2012) USA, Austria
Evolution of the active layer
Single-layer OSC
Bi-layer OSC
Bulk heterojunction OSC
Efficiency = 0.1 %
Efficiency = 10 %
Efficiency = 1 %
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organic_solar_cell
Construction of the OPV Devices
Transparent electrode
1. As a transparent widow layer
2. Collect holes (anode)
Hole Transporting Layer
1. Protect the active layer
2. As an electron-blocking layer
3. Assist hole transport
4. Smoothen the rough surfaces of the TCO
LiF as a cathode buffer layer
1. To prevent diffusion of cathode elements to the active layer
2. To act as an electron-transport, Hole-blocking layer.

The main challenge is they require high deposition temperature which can potentially
damage the active layer
D. Ginley, Fundamentals of materials for Energy
and Environmental Sustainability, page 232
Energy-level band diagram
Energy-level band diagram of a typical P3HT:PCBM Organic Solar Cell
D. Ginley, Fundamentals of materials for Energy
and Environmental Sustainability, page 233
Progress in Organic Solar Cells
M. Gratzel, Nature 2012
Solar cells characteristics
Current-voltage response of a solar cell
Diode model of a solar cell
Omar A. AbdulRazzaq, Organic Solar Cells: A review of Materials, Limitations and Possibilities for Improvements, 2013; Pg 428
HOMO and LUMO energy levels
Tom J. Savenije, Organic Solar Cells Delft University
Energy levels in inorganic and organic semiconductors
Illustration of HOMO and LUMO energy levels
Limitations of Photocurrent in OSC
Carrier transport mechanism in OSC
1. Light absorption;
2. Diffusion of exciton to interface;
3. Charge separation;
4. Charge Transport
5. Charge Collection

Omar A. AbdulRazzaq, Organic Solar Cells: A review of Materials, Limitations and Possibilities for Improvements, 2013; Pg 431
Limitations of Photocurrent in OSC (2)
Bulk-heterojunction solar cell
Exciton Diffusion
Charge Separation
Exciton Diffusion
Charge Separation
Low dielectric constant
Formation of exciton (tightly-bound)
Frenkel excitons
Considerations
Collect a high number of photo-generated carriers
Brabec and Durrant, Cambridge University (2008)
Use small band-gap polymers
Increase electrical conductivity by improving the crystal structure
Large donor-acceptor interface to
promote the dissociation of more
excitons
Improve crystallinity by thermal
annealing of the solution-based
mixture
Absorb more light
Tandem organic solar cells
Behaves like cells in series
Same-current limitation
Coupling processing techniques
Minimize thermalization losses
M. Gratzel, Materials interface engineering for solution-processed photovoltaics, Nature 306, vol 488, 2012
Ternary Organic Solar Cells
Tayebeh Ameri Adv Mater. 2013, 25, 4243-4266
Improve the photon harvesting in thickness limited photoactive layers
Eliminates the challenges of multi-junction solar cells
Limitation: Lower Voc
Sensitizers can be dyes, polymers or nano-particles
Cascade Charge Transfer
Schematic representation of the cascade
charge transfer in ternary solar cell
Tayebeh Ameri Adv Mater. 2013, 25, 4243-4266
Illustration of an optimal microstructure of the
ternary blends
Parallel-like Charge Transfer
Tayebeh Ameri Adv Mater. 2013, 25, 4243-4266
Schematic representation of the parallel-like
charge transfer in a ternary solar cell
Plasmonics in Organic Solar Cells
Enhance light-trapping (increase in optical path length)
First developed by Goetzberger et al. 1981
Enable the use of ultra-thin layers (semi-transparency)
Light-trapping techniques used in thin-film solar cells
Atwater, H.A., and Polman, A. (2010). Plasmonics for improved photovoltaic devices, Nature Materials 9; 205-213
Grated back-contact
Creates a strong E-field
Plasmonics in OSC
The shape and size of the nano-particles greatly affect the
angular spread

Atwater, H.A., and Polman, A. (2010). Plasmonics for improved photovoltaic devices, Nature Materials 9; 205-213
Sensitivity of plasmon light scattering to nanoparticles shape and size
Inverted OSC
Efficient Inverted Polymer Solar Cells. Applied Physics Letter 88 (2006)
Inverted OSC (2)
PCE= 9.2 %
current density of 17.2 mA/cm
2
,
15.4 mA/cm
2
for the regular device.
South China University of Technology,
Guangzhou, 2012
Hongbin Wu

Tayebeh Ameri Adv Mater. 2013, 25, 4243-4266
Conclusion
The expected high-efficiency per unit cost ratio
The simplicity in fabrication and processing
The mechanical flexibility of these materials
The short diffusion length
Low absorption of the active layer
Tandem architectures incorporated with plasmons
Organic cells made up of polymer nanocomposites


Lets drive tomorrow today!
Thank you for your attention.
References
D. Burke, et al (2013). Green chemistry for organic solar cells. Energy
Environ. Sci, 6: 2053
M. Graetzel, et al (2012). Materials interface engineering for solution-
processed photovoltaics. Nature Review article 488: 304-312.
O. Abdulrazzaq, et al (2013). Organic Solar Cells: A review of materials,
limitations, possibilities for improvement. Particulate Sci and Tech, 31:
427-442
T. Ameri, et al (2013). Organic Ternary Solar Cells: A review. Advanced
Materials, 25: 4245-4266
M. Liu, et al (2013). Efficient planar heterojunction perovskite solar cells
by vapour deposition. Nature 501: 395-402
M. Green (2005). Silicon Photovoltaic Modules: A brief History of the first
50 years. Prog. Photovolt: Res. Appl. 13: 447-455