Influence of electron-donating polymer addition on the performance of polymer solar cells

Here we report the influence of electron-donating polymer addition on the performance of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) : 1-(3-methoxycarbonyl)-propyl-1-phenyl-(6,6)C-61 (PCBM) solar cells. Poly[2-methoxy-5-(3',7'-dimethyloctyloxy)-1,4-phenylenevinylene] (MDMO-PPV) was chosen as the electron-donating polymer to improve the open circuit voltage (V-OC) due to its higher level of the highest occupied molecular orbital energy compared with P3HT. Results showed that the MDMO-PPV addition led to an improved V-OC for ternary blend (P3HT : MDMO-PPV: PCBM) solar cells. In particular, after thermal annealing at 110 degrees C, the short circuit current density of ternary blend solar cells was greatly improved, close to that of comparative binary blend (P3HT : PCBM) solar cells.