Interfacial Charge Transfer States in Condensed Phase Systems

Intermolecular charge transfer (CT) states at the interface between electron-donating (D) and electron-accepting (A) materials in organic thin films are characterized by absorption and emission bands within the optical gap of the interfacing materials. CT states efficiently generate charge carriers for some D-A combinations, and others show high fluorescence quantum efficiencies. These properties are exploited in organic solar cells, photodetectors, and light-emitting diodes. This review summarizes experimental and theoretical work on the electronic structure and interfacial energy landscape at condensed matter D-A interfaces. Recent findings on photogeneration and recombination of free charge carriers via CT states are discussed, and relations between CT state properties and optoelectronic device parameters are clarified.