A direct arylation approach towards efficient small molecule organic solar cells

CdTe is a very robust and chemically stable material and for this reason its related solar cell thin film photovoltaic technology is now the only thin film technology in the first 10 top producers in the world. CdTe has an optimum band gap for the Schockley-Queisser limit and could deliver very high efficiencies as single junction device of more than 32%, with an open circuit voltage of 1 V and a short circuit current density exceeding 30 mA/cm2. CdTe solar cells were introduced at the beginning of the 70s and they have been studied and implemented particularly in the last 30 years. The strong improvement in efficiency in the last 5 years was obtained by a new redesign of the CdTe solar cell device reaching a single solar cell efficiency of 22.1% and a module efficiency of 19%. In this paper we describe the fabrication process following the history of the solar cell as it was developed in the early years up to the latest development and changes. Moreover the paper also presents future possible alternative absorbers and discusses the only apparently controversial environmental impacts of this fantastic technology.

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Star-shaped organic semiconductors with planar triazine core and diketopyrrolopyrrole branches for solution-processed small-molecule organic solar cells

Dyes and Pigments ◽

10.1016/j.dyepig.2014.12.007 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 115 ◽

pp. 35-49 ◽

Cited By ~ 24

Author(s):

Sheng-Yi Shiau ◽

Chun-Ho Chang ◽

Wei-Jen Chen ◽

Hsing-Ju Wang ◽

Ru-Jong Jeng ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Solar Cells ◽

Organic Semiconductors ◽

Small Molecule ◽

Organic Solar Cells ◽

Solution Processed

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Junction Configuration Effects on the Photovoltaic Parameters of a-Si/CZTS Solar Cells

10.20944/preprints202201.0163.v1 ◽

2022 ◽

Author(s):

H. Bitam ◽

B. Hadjoudja ◽

Beddiaf Zaidi ◽

C. Shakher ◽

S. Gagui ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Renewable Energy ◽

Solar Cells ◽

Solar Cell ◽

Open Circuit Voltage ◽

Open Circuit ◽

Photovoltaic Devices ◽

Solar Cell Efficiency ◽

Cell Efficiency ◽

Reported Study ◽

Stated Problem

Due to increased energy intensive human activities resulting accelerated demand for electric power coupled with occurrence of natural disasters with increased frequency, intensity, and duration, it becomes essential to explore and advance renewable energy technology for sustainability of the society. Addressing the stated problem and providing a radical solution has been attempted in this study. To harvest the renewable energy, among variety of solar cells reported, a composite a-Si/CZTS photovoltaic devices has not yet been investigated. The calculated parameters for solar cell based on the new array of layers consisting of a-Si/CZTS are reported in this study. The variation of i) solar cell efficiency as a function of CZTS layer thickness, temperature, acceptor, and donor defect concentration; ii) variation of the open circuit current density as a function of temperature, open circuit voltage; iii) variation of open circuit voltage as a function of the thickness of the CZTS layer has been determined. There has been no reported study on a-Si/CZTS configuration-based solar cell, analysis of the parameters, and study to address the challenges imped efficiency of the photovoltaic device and the same has been discussed in this work. The value of the SnO2/a-Si/CZTS solar cells obtained from the simulation is 23.9 %.

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Organic and nano-structured composite photovoltaics: An overview

Journal of Materials Research ◽

10.1557/jmr.2005.0407 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 20 (12) ◽

pp. 3167-3179 ◽

Cited By ~ 152

Author(s):

Sophie E. Gledhill ◽

Brian Scott ◽

Brian A. Gregg

Keyword(s):

Solar Cells ◽

Solar Cell ◽

Organic Semiconductors ◽

Organic Solar Cells ◽

Organic Materials ◽

Low Cost ◽

Open Circuit ◽

Charge Generation ◽

Dye Sensitized ◽

Excitonic Solar Cells

Organic photovoltaic devices are poised to fill the low-cost, low power niche in the solar cell market. Recently measured efficiencies of solid-state organic cells are nudging 5% while Grätzel’s more established dye-sensitized solar cell technology is more than double this. A fundamental understanding of the excitonic nature of organic materials is an essential backbone for device engineering. Bound electron-hole pairs, “excitons,” are formed in organic semiconductors on photo-absorption. In the organic solar cell, the exciton must diffuse to the donor–accepter interface for simultaneous charge generation and separation. This interface is critical as the concentration of charge carriers is high and recombination here is higher than in the bulk. Nanostructured engineering of the interface has been utilized to maximize organic materials properties, namely to compensate the poor exciton diffusion lengths and lower mobilities. Excitonic solar cells have different limitations on their open-circuit photo-voltages due to these high interfacial charge carrier concentrations, and their behavior cannot be interpreted as if they were conventional solar cells. This article briefly reviews some of the differences between excitonic organic solar cells and conventional inorganic solar cells and highlights some of the technical strategies used in this rapidly progressing field, whose ultimate aim is for organic solar cells to be a commercial reality.

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Thin‐film solar cells exceeding 22% solar cell efficiency: An overview on CdTe-, Cu(In,Ga)Se2-, and perovskite-based materials

Applied Physics Reviews ◽

10.1063/1.5061809 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 5 (4) ◽

pp. 041602 ◽

Cited By ~ 41

Author(s):

Michael Powalla ◽

Stefan Paetel ◽

Erik Ahlswede ◽

Roland Wuerz ◽

Cordula D. Wessendorf ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Solar Cells ◽

Solar Cell ◽

Thin Film Solar Cells ◽

Solar Cell Efficiency ◽

Cell Efficiency

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A thermally and mechanically stable solar cell made of a small-molecule donor and a polymer acceptor

Journal of Materials Chemistry A ◽

10.1039/c7ta04445c ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 5 (30) ◽

pp. 15923-15931 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Sora Oh ◽

Sachin Badgujar ◽

Da Hun Kim ◽

Wang-Eun Lee ◽

Nasir Khan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thermal Stability ◽

Solar Cells ◽

Solar Cell ◽

Small Molecule ◽

Organic Solar Cells ◽

Highly Efficient ◽

Polymer Acceptor ◽

Thickness Tolerance

Highly efficient and stable BDT2TR:PNDI-2T organic solar cells are investigated. Although this system shows a PCE of 4.43%, significant enhancements are observed in the thermal stability, high thickness tolerance, and flexibility as compared with the PC71BM-based organic solar cells.

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