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Investigation of the magnetic nickel nanoparticle on performance improvement of P3HT:PCBM solar cell

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Abstract

This work reports an investigation on the performance improvement of bulk heterojunction polymer solar cells made of poly(3-hexylthiophene) and [6,6]-phenyl C61-butyric acid methyl ester (P3HT:PCBM) blend system by introducing nickel nanoparticles (Ni NPs). Using the simplest cell structure, the addition ratio of 2 % of Ni NPs results in a remarkable increase in the light absorption and the short current, which brings an enhancement on power conversion efficiency with 25 % compared with the reference device. The analysis indicates that the electromagnetic surface wave generated from Ni NPs coupled with the photoactive layer forms surface plasmon resonance, which can result in a light trapping effect to increase the light absorption. As a conclusion, the inexpensive Ni NPs may provide an effect and alternative process on the performance improvement of the polymer solar devices.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Physics and Electrics Engineering, Henan Normal University, Henan Key Laboratory of Photovoltaic Materials, Xinxiang, 453007, People’s Republic of China

    Xiu Gong, Yurong Jiang, Congcong Zhang, Lei Yang, Meng Li & Heng Ma

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  1. Xiu Gong
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  2. Yurong Jiang
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  3. Congcong Zhang
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  4. Lei Yang
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  5. Meng Li
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  6. Heng Ma
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Correspondence to Heng Ma.

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Gong, X., Jiang, Y., Zhang, C. et al. Investigation of the magnetic nickel nanoparticle on performance improvement of P3HT:PCBM solar cell. Appl. Phys. A 122, 287 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-016-9809-0

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