Binary to Ternary Blends: Efficient and Stable Organic Solar Cells for Versatile Applications

Identifier:  TDX:4185

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/TDX4185

Authors:  Torimtubun, Alfonsina Abat Amelenan

Abstract:
High efficiency and stable devices along with low-cost production are the key prerequisites for organic photovoltaics technology to enter niche market. Ternary approach and contacts interface engineering have been reported as the effective strategies to overcome the main performance and stability limitations encountered in organic solar cells. However, due to the myriad options of third components and buffer layer materials with varied physical and chemical properties, a judicious materials selection that matches with certain applications remains a challenge. In this thesis, we combined the interfacial engineering and ternary strategies to improve the device performance and stability of organic solar cells for versatile applications, such as indoor and semitransparent devices. First, a cathode interface engineering using three different electron transport layers materials was comparatively studied under 1 sun and indoor LED illuminations to obtain high efficiency and photostable binary fullerene-based device for indoor application. Then, for traditional outdoor application, we have employed the ternary strategy by adding the novel fluorinated metallophthalocyanines MPcF48 and commercial ITIC-M or PC70BM as third components in binary fullerene-based and binary nonfullerene-based blends, respectively, to improve the device efficiency and stability. Yet, the ternary strategy using the state-of-the-art Y-series nonfullerene acceptors can be applied to obtain efficient and stable semitransparent nonfullerene-based device. As last, we have introduced a combined frequency and time-resolved techniques to study in-depth the shelf lifetime degradation of organic solar cells in accordance with ISOS-D1 protocol.