Tuning the properties of polymer bulk heterojunction solar cells by adjusting fullerene size to control intercalation

Nichole C. Cates, Roman Gysel, Zach Beiley, Chad E. Miller, Michael F. Toney, Martin Heeney, Lain McCulloch, Michael D. McGehee

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

245 Scopus citations

Abstract

We demonstrate that intercalation of fullerene derivatives between the side chains of conjugated polymers can be controlled by adjusting the fullerene size and compare the properties of intercalated and nonintercalated poly(2,5-bis(3-hexadecylthiophen-2-yl)thieno[3,2-b]thiophene (pBTTT):fullerene blends. The intercalated blends, which exhibit optimal solar-cell performance at 1:4 polymer:fullerene by weight, have better photoluminescence quenching and lower absorption than the nonintercalated blends, which optimize at 1:1. Understanding how intercalation affects performance will enable more effective design of polymer:fullerene solar cells.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)4153-4157
Number of pages5
JournalNano Letters
Volume9
Issue number12
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 9 2009
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Bioengineering
  • General Chemistry
  • General Materials Science
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Mechanical Engineering

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