Proceedings of Online International Conference on Hybrid and Organic Photovoltaics (OnlineHOPV20)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29363/nanoge.onlinehopv.2020.014
Publication date: 22nd May 2020
In the field of organic photovoltaics, efficiencies beyond 17% have recently been achieved by combining low bandgap conjugated polymers with small-molecule non-fullerene acceptors (NFAs). To understand what differentiates non-fullerenes from conventional fullerenes in terms of the charge separation and transport processes, we have used ultrafast transient absorption spectroscopy (TAS), electro-modulated differential absorption spectroscopy (EDA) and terahertz measurements (THz). Combinations of different polymers (J61, P3HT, PCDTBT) with the m-ITIC acceptor were investigated. We have thus demonstrated how charge generation and recombination processes depend on parameters such as the charge-transfer driving force, the short-range charge mobility and the morphology. Moreover, to simplify the complexity of the processes caused by the phase morphology of bulk heterojunction blends, we have worked with bilayers of the donor polymer with the NFA, and with blends containing dilute concentrations of the acceptor. We show for example that hole-transfer processes can be very fast in spite of negligible driving force, and that free charge generation is strongly impacted by THz mobilities.