Inkjet printed silver nanowire percolation networks as electrodes for highly efficient semitransparent organic solar cells

In this work, we demonstrate inkjet printing of silver nanowires (AgNW) with an average length of 10's of mu m using industrial printheads with nozzle diameters in the same size range. The printed silver nanowire mesh reveals uniform distribution and a good balance between conductivity and transmittance, which is comparable to layers fabricated by conventional methods like slot-die or spray coating. Employing a novel AgNW ink formulation based on a high boiling alcohol allows printing directly on PEDOT:PSS and prevents nozzle clogging. Using silver nanowire meshes as bottom and top electrodes, a fully inkjet printed semitransparent organic solar cell with a power conversion efficiency of 4.3% for 1 cm(2) area is demonstrated, which is the highest value reported so far for fully inkjet printed organic photovoltaic cells. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.