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Two-dimensional like conjugated copolymers for high efficiency bulk-heterojunction solar cell application: Band gap and energy level engineering

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Abstract

Three two-dimensional like conjugated copolymers PFSDCN, PFSDTA and PFSDCNIO, which consist of alternating fluorene and triphenylamine main chain, and different pendant acceptor groups (malononitrile, 1,3-diethtyl-2-thiobarbituric acid and 2-(1,2-dihydro-1-oxoinden-3-ylidene)malononitrile) with thiophene as π-bridge, have been designed, synthesized and characterized. The structure-property relationships of the two-dimensional like conjugated copolymers were systematically investigated. The absorption spectra, band gaps, and energy levels of the polymers were effectively tuned by simply attaching different acceptor groups. As the electron-withdrawing ability of the acceptors increased, the band gaps of the polymers were narrowed from 2.05 to 1.61 eV; meanwhile, the LUMO energy levels of the polymers decreased from −3.27 to −3.75 eV, whereas their relatively deep HOMO energy levels of ∼−5.35 eV were preserved. BHJ solar cells were fabricated and characterized by using the three polymers as donor materials and the highest power conversion efficiency of 2.87% was achieved for the device based on PFSDTA:(6,6)-phenyl-C71-butyric acid methyl ester blend.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Polymer Optoelectronic Materials & Devices, Key Laboratory of Specially Functional Materials of the Ministry of Education, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, 510640, China

    ChunHui Duan, ShengJian Liu, Fei Huang & Yong Cao

  2. Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, China

    ChuanDao Wang & C. H. Wallace Choy

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  1. ChunHui Duan
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  2. ChuanDao Wang
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Correspondence to Fei Huang, C. H. Wallace Choy or Yong Cao.

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Duan, C., Wang, C., Liu, S. et al. Two-dimensional like conjugated copolymers for high efficiency bulk-heterojunction solar cell application: Band gap and energy level engineering. Sci. China Chem. 54, 685–694 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11426-011-4257-3

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