An Electron Acceptor Analogue for Lowering Trap Density in Organic Solar Cells

Typical organic semiconductor materials exhibit a high trap density of states, ranging from 10(16) to 10(18) cm(-3), which is one of the important factors in limiting the improvement of power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of organic solar cells (OSCs). In order to reduce the trap density within OSCs, a new strategy to design and synthesize an electron acceptor analogue, BTPR, is developed, which is introduced into OSCs as a third component to enhance the molecular packing order of electron acceptor with and without blending a polymer donor. Finally, the as-cast ternary OSC devices employing BTPR show a notable PCE of 17.8%, with a low trap density (10(15) cm(-3)) and a low energy loss (0.217 eV) caused by non-radiative recombination. This PCE is among the highest values for single-junction OSCs. The trap density of OSCs with the BTPR additives, as low as 10(15) cm(-3), is comparable to and even lower than those of several typical high-performance inorganic/hybrid counterparts, like 10(16) cm(-3) for amorphous silicon, 10(16) cm(-3) for metal oxides, and 10(14) to 10(15) cm(-3) for halide perovskite thin film, and makes it promising for OSCs to obtain a PCE of up to 20%.

Automated summary

The introduction of BTPR as a third component in organic solar cells reduces the trap density, leading to significant improvements in PCE and energy loss. This offers new possibilities for achieving higher efficiency solar cells.