Efficient organic solar cells processed from hydrocarbon solvents

Jingbo Zhao, Yunke Li, Guofang Yang, Kui Jiang, Haoran Lin, Harald Ade, Wei Ma () and He Yan ()
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Jingbo Zhao: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Yunke Li: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Guofang Yang: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Kui Jiang: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Haoran Lin: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology
Harald Ade: North Carolina State University
Wei Ma: State Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials, Xi’an Jiaotong University
He Yan: The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

Nature Energy, 2016, vol. 1, issue 2, 1-7

Abstract: Abstract Organic solar cells have desirable properties, including low cost of materials, high-throughput roll-to-roll production, mechanical flexibility and light weight. However, all top-performance devices are at present processed using halogenated solvents, which are environmentally hazardous and would thus require expensive mitigation to contain the hazards. Attempts to process organic solar cells from non-halogenated solvents lead to inferior performance. Overcoming this hurdle, here we present a hydrocarbon-based processing system that is not only more environmentally friendly but also yields cells with power conversion efficiencies of up to 11.7%. Our processing system incorporates the synergistic effects of a hydrocarbon solvent, a novel additive, a suitable choice of polymer side chain, and strong temperature-dependent aggregation of the donor polymer. Our results not only demonstrate a method of producing active layers of organic solar cells in an environmentally friendly way, but also provide important scientific insights that will facilitate further improvement of the morphology and performance of organic solar cells.

Date: 2016
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DOI: 10.1038/nenergy.2015.27

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