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A combined experimental and theoretical investigation of donor and acceptor interface in efficient aqueous-processed polymer/nanocrystal hybrid solar cells

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Abstract

As a route to improving the energy conversion of organic-inorganic hybrid-solar cells, we have tested the performance of poly (phenylene vinylene) (PPV), poly(2,5-thienylene vinylene) (PWTV) polymers and CdTe nanocrystal devices produced via aqueous-processing. It is found that small differences in the conformation of the sensitizer lead to dramatic effects on the solar cell efficiency. Using a combination of UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy and first-principles non-adiabatic molecular dynamics (NAMD) based on time-dependent density-functional theory (TDDFT), PPV is found to have a longer electron injection and recombination time despite seeming to have a better energy alignment with the substrate, which leads to a higher devices performance than PWTV. The present results shed new light on the understanding of organic-inorganic hybrid-solar cells and will trigger further experimental and theoretical investigations.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (51433003) and the National Basic Research Program of China (2014CB643503).

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Author notes

  1. These authors contributed equally to the work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Supramolecular Structure and Materials, College of Chemistry, Jilin University, Changchun, 130012, China

    Siyu Lu, Gan Jin, Qingsen Zeng, Xiaolei Feng, Tanglue Feng & Bai Yang

  2. College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, China

    Siyu Lu

  3. Ningxia Key Laboratory of Photovoltaic Materials, Ningxia University, Yinchuan, 750021, China

    Wei Ma

  4. Geophysical Laboratory, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington DC, 20015, USA

    Hanyu Liu

  5. Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics, and Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China

    Sheng Meng

  6. Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3EQ, UK

    Simon A. T. Redfern

Authors
  1. Siyu Lu
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  2. Wei Ma
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  3. Gan Jin
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  4. Qingsen Zeng
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  5. Xiaolei Feng
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  6. Tanglue Feng
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  7. Hanyu Liu
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  8. Sheng Meng
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  9. Simon A. T. Redfern
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  10. Bai Yang
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Sheng Meng or Bai Yang.

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11426_2017_9177_MOESM1_ESM.doc

A combined experimental and theoretical investigation of donor and acceptor interface in efficient aqueous-processed polymer/nanocrystal hybrid solar cells

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Lu, S., Ma, W., Jin, G. et al. A combined experimental and theoretical investigation of donor and acceptor interface in efficient aqueous-processed polymer/nanocrystal hybrid solar cells. Sci. China Chem. 61, 437–443 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11426-017-9177-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11426-017-9177-x

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