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Rhodanine flanked indacenodithiophene as non-fullerene acceptor for efficient polymer solar cells

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Abstract

A fused-ring electron acceptor IDT-2BR1 based on indacenodithiophene core with hexyl side-chains flanked by benzothiadiazole rhodanine was designed and synthesized. In comparison with its counterpart with hexylphenyl side-chains (IDT-2BR), IDT-2BR1 exhibits higher highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) energy but similar lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) energy (IDT-2BR1: HOMO=−5.37 eV, LUMO=−3.67 eV; IDT-2BR: HOMO=−5.52 eV, LUMO=−3.69 eV), red-shifted absorption and narrower bandgap. IDT-2BR1 has higher electron mobility (2.2×10–3 cm2 V–1 s–1) than IDT-2BR (3.4×10–4 cm2 V–1 s–1) due to the reduced steric hindrance and ordered molecular packing. Fullerene-free organic solar cells based on PTB7-Th:IDT-2BR1 yield power conversion efficiencies up to 8.7%, higher than that of PTB7-Th:IDT-2BR (7.7%), with a high open circuit voltage of 0.95 V and good device stability.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (2013CB834702), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (91433114). The supercomputing center of Chinese Academy of Sciences is acknowledged for molecular modeling. J. Mai, T. Lau and X. Lu acknowledge the financial support from Research Grant Council of Hong Kong (General Research Fund No. 14303314 and Theme-based Research Scheme No. T23-407/13-N).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Polymer Chemistry and Physics of Ministry of Education, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, College of Engineering, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China

    Boyu Jia, Yao Wu, Cenqi Yan, Siya Zhu & Xiaowei Zhan

  2. Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100190, China

    Fuwen Zhao, Pei Cheng & Chunru Wang

  3. Department of Physics, Chinese University of Hong Kong, New Territories, Hong Kong, China

    Jiangquan Mai, Tsz-Ki Lau & Xinhui Lu

  4. National Synchrotron Radiation Research Center, Taiwan, 30076, China

    Chun-Jen Su

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  1. Boyu Jia
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  2. Yao Wu
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  7. Jiangquan Mai
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  9. Xinhui Lu
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Correspondence to Xiaowei Zhan.

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Jia, B., Wu, Y., Zhao, F. et al. Rhodanine flanked indacenodithiophene as non-fullerene acceptor for efficient polymer solar cells. Sci. China Chem. 60, 257–263 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11426-016-0336-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11426-016-0336-6

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