Abstract
This chapter provides a detailed summary of the invention of the blended junction. The author’s work on the blended junction was motivated by the surprising report by C. W. Tang regarding his two-layer organic semiconductor cell. The author then examined the photovoltaic behaviors as a function of interface fabrication and found that the molecular contact between perylene (PTC) and phthalocyanine (Pc) pigments is a key for the excellent photocarrier generation ability. This insight guided the author to develop the blended junctions with a vast number of perylene (PTC):phthalocyanine (Pc) molecular contacts that doubled the photocarrier generation efficiency. The three-layer organic solar cell was the first report of the blended junction. This report already contained the predictions for organic solar cells of the future, i.e., (i) the p-i-n energetic structure fabricated by doping, (ii) percolation as an inevitable issue of the blended junction, (iii) efficient carrier photogeneration via an exciplex (PTC−–Pc+)* and donor–acceptor sensitization that are related to the charge–transfer state. Blended junctions have become indispensable for today’s organic solar cells.
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09 March 2021
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Hiramoto, M. (2021). A Path to the Blended Junction. In: Hiramoto, M., Izawa, S. (eds) Organic Solar Cells. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9113-6_2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-15-9113-6_2
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