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Electrostatic Self‐Assembly Conjugated Polyelectrolyte‐Surfactant Complex as an Interlayer for High Performance Polymer Solar Cells
Author(s) -
Chang YiMing,
Zhu Rui,
Richard Eric,
Chen ChunChao,
Li Gang,
Yang Yang
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
advanced functional materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.069
H-Index - 322
eISSN - 1616-3028
pISSN - 1616-301X
DOI - 10.1002/adfm.201200738
Subject(s) - materials science , polyelectrolyte , polymer solar cell , polymer , chemical engineering , pulmonary surfactant , conjugated system , cationic polymerization , cathode , hybrid solar cell , photoactive layer , band gap , polymer chemistry , optoelectronics , composite material , chemistry , engineering
A simple method is demonstrated to improve the film‐forming properties and air stability of a conjugated polyelectrolyte (CPE) without complicated synthesis of new chemical structures. An anionic surfactant, sodium dodecybenzenesulfonate (SDS), is mixed with cationic CPEs. The electrostatic attraction between these two oppositely‐charged materials provides the driving force to form a stable CPE‐surfactant complex. Compared with a pure CPE, this electrostatic complex is not only compatible with highly hydrophobic bulk‐heterojunction (BHJ) films, e.g. poly(3‐hexylthiophene):[6,6]‐phenyl C 61 butyric acid methyl ester (P3HT:PCBM), but also works well with other low bandgap polymer‐based BHJ films. Using this complex as a cathode interface layer, a high power conversion efficiency of 4% can be obtained in P3HT:PCBM solar cells together with improved stability in air. Moreover, ∼20% performance enhancement can also be achieved when the complex is used as an interlayer to replace calcium metal for low bandgap polymer‐based BHJ systems.