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Unraveling the Complex Nanomorphology of Ternary Organic Solar Cells with Multimodal Analytical Transmission Electron Microscopy
Author(s) -
Rechberger Stefanie,
Gasparini Nicola,
Singh Ranbir,
Kim Min,
Chochos Christos L.,
Gregoriou Vasilis G.,
Cho Kilwon,
Brabec Christoph J.,
Ameri Tayebeh,
Spiecker Erdmann
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
solar rrl
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.544
H-Index - 37
ISSN - 2367-198X
DOI - 10.1002/solr.202000114
Subject(s) - ternary operation , organic solar cell , materials science , transmission electron microscopy , photovoltaics , active layer , chemical physics , scanning transmission electron microscopy , energy conversion efficiency , solar cell , nanotechnology , optoelectronics , polymer , photovoltaic system , chemistry , layer (electronics) , computer science , composite material , ecology , thin film transistor , biology , programming language
Elucidating the complex materials distribution in the active layers of ternary organic solar cells is one of the greatest challenges in the field of organic photovoltaics. Knowledge of the nanomorphology is key to understanding photophysical processes (e.g., charge separation, adjustment of the recombination mechanism, and suppression of the radiationless and energetic losses) and thus improving the device performance. Herein, for the first time, the successful discrimination and spatial mapping of the active layer components of a ternary organic solar cell are demonstrated using analytical transmission electron microscopy. The material distribution of all three organic components is successfully visualized by multimodal imaging using complementary electron energy loss signals. A complete picture of the morphological aspects can be gained by studying the lateral and cross‐sectional morphology as well as the morphology evolution as a function of the mixing ratio of the polymers. Finally, a correlation between the morphology, photophysical processes, and device performance of the ternary and the reference binary system is achieved, explaining the differences of the power conversion efficiency between the two systems.