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Photodiodes based on wood pulp fiber networks

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Abstract

Wood cellulose is a desirable inexpensive, abundant and biodegradable substrate material for flexible organic electronics. While paper-based conductors are easily achieved, their applicability for diode architectures is challenging. To diminish short circuits, smoothing fillers and coatings are used before diode deposition. In this report, an alternative approach for use of cellulose in organic photovoltaics is demonstrated, using natural, rough unmodified kraft pulp fiber networks as a carrier of a diode architecture. Silver nanowires are adsorbed by the hydroxyl groups of cellulose fiber, forming the semi-transparent anode. The follow-on coatings for the diode are simply deposited as a mantle on these fiber anodes. The potential of this approach is demonstrated by the first production of cellulose fiber-based P3HT:PCBM photovoltaic devices, showing clear diode behaviour in the dark and a significant photoresponse under illumination. Fill factors near 35 % and open-circuit voltages of 0.2 V were achieved without any optimization. Devices show even noticeable photocurrent at low unfavourable light conditions, indicating their advantageous capture of stray light within the paper fiber network. These results highlight that for “paper” diodes, its natural properties can be turned into advantages, instead of seeking routes to suppress them.

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Acknowledgments

Financial support by the Federal Ministry of Economy, Family and Youth and the National Foundation for Research, Technology, and Development, Austria, is gratefully acknowledged. H.K. and B.F. are grateful for financial support by NAWI Graz.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Solid State Physics, Graz University of Technology, Petersgasse 16, 8010, Graz, Austria

    Heribert Kopeinik, Robert Schennach & Bettina Friedel

  2. CD-Laboratory of Surface Chemical and Physical Fundamentals of Paper Strength, Petersgasse 16, 8010, Graz, Austria

    Robert Schennach

  3. Department of Wood, Pulp and Paper, Faculty of Chemical and Food Technology, Institute of Polymer Materials, Slovak University of Technology, Radlinského 9, 812 37, Bratislava, Slovak Republic

    Jan Gallik

  4. Institute for Electron Microscopy and Nanoanalysis, Graz University of Technology, Steyrergasse 17, 8010, Graz, Austria

    Harald Plank

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  1. Heribert Kopeinik
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Correspondence to Bettina Friedel.

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Kopeinik, H., Schennach, R., Gallik, J. et al. Photodiodes based on wood pulp fiber networks. Cellulose 22, 3425–3434 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-015-0739-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10570-015-0739-3

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