Concurrently Improved J(sc), Fill Factor, and Stability in a Ternary Organic Solar Cell Enabled by a C-Shaped Non-fullerene Acceptor and Its Structurally Similar Third Component

Li, ST (Li, Shitong) 1, 2Sun, YN (Sun, Yanna) 1, 2Zhou, BL (Zhou, Bailin) 1, 2Fu, Q (Fu, Qiang) 1, 2Meng, LX (Meng, Lingxian) 1, 2Yang, Y (Yang, Yang) 3Wang, J (Wang, Jian) 3Yao, ZY (Yao, Zhaoyang) 1, 2Wan, XJ (Wan, Xiangjian) 1, 2Chen, YS (Chen, Yongsheng) 1, 2

ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES, 2021, 13(34): 40766-40777

DOI 10.1021/acsami.1c13035

Abstract

A ternary strategy is recognized as a promising approach that enjoys both the simplicity of fabrication conditions and potential to improve performance in organic solar cells. Herein, a C-shaped narrow band gap non-fullerene acceptor GL1 with a C-2v symmetry based on a new core was designed and synthesized. A power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 11.43% was achieved by employing PBDB-T:GL1 as an active layer to fabricate photovoltaic devices. To further promote photovoltaic performance, following a similar-structure prescreen principle, a middle band gap acceptor F-2Cl with the same backbone shape, side-chain distribution, and dipole moment orientation as GL1 was introduced as the guest acceptor into the active layer. Thus, benefiting from the collaboration of complementary absorption, cascade energy levels, and well-modified microstructure of the active layer, a 13.17% PCE was obtained with concurrently elevated J(sc), fill factor, and stability for the optimized ternary device. This work presents a successful example of prescreening the third component to simplify the workload for a high-performance ternary device.