Traps and transport resistance are the next frontiers for stable non-fullerene acceptor solar cells

Long operational stability is essential to commercialisation of organic solar cells. Here, the authors investigate the thermal degradation of inverted photovoltaic devices based on PM6:Y6 non-fullerene system to reveal that trap-induced transport resistance is primarily responsible for the drop in fill factor. Stability is one of the most important challenges facing material research for organic solar cells (OSC) on their path to further commercialization. In the high-performance material system PM6:Y6 studied here, we investigate degradation mechanisms of inverted photovoltaic devices. We have identified two distinct degradation pathways: one requires the presence of both illumination and oxygen and features a short-circuit current reduction, the other one is induced thermally and marked by severe losses of open-circuit voltage and fill factor. We focus our investigation on the thermally accelerated degradation. Our findings show that bulk material properties and interfaces remain remarkably stable, however, aging-induced defect state formation in the active layer remains the primary cause of thermal degradation. The increased trap density leads to higher non-radiative recombination, which limits the open-circuit voltage and lowers the charge carrier mobility in the photoactive layer. Furthermore, we find the trap-induced transport resistance to be the major reason for the drop in fill factor. Our results suggest that device lifetimes could be significantly increased by marginally suppressing trap formation, leading to a bright future for OSC.

Automated summary

The stability of organic solar cells is crucial for their commercialization. This study investigates the thermal degradation of inverted photovoltaic devices based on the PM6:Y6 non-fullerene system and identifies trap-induced transport resistance as the primary cause of the drop in fill factor. By suppressing trap formation, device lifetimes could be significantly increased, offering a promising future for organic solar cells.