Semi-Transparent Tandem Organic Solar Cells with 90% Internal Quantum Efficiency
Journal article, 2012

Semi-transparent (ST) organic solar cells with potential application as power generating windows are studied. The main challenge is to find proper transparent electrodes with desired electrical and optical properties. In this work, this is addressed by employing an amphiphilic conjugated polymer PFPA-1 modified ITO coated glass substrate as the ohmic electron-collecting cathode and PEDOT:PSS PH1000 as the hole-collecting anode. For active layers based on different donor polymers, considerably lower reflection and parasitic absorption are found in the ST solar cells as compared to solar cells in the standard geometry with an ITO/PEDOT:PSS anode and a LiF/Al cathode. The ST solar cells have remarkably high internal quantum efficiency at short circuit condition (similar to 90%) and high transmittance (similar to 50%). Hence, efficient ST tandem solar cells with enhanced power conversion efficiency (PCE) compared to a single ST solar cell can be constructed by connecting the stacked two ST sub-cells in parallel. The total loss of photons by reflection, parasitic absorption and transmission in the ST tandem solar cell can be smaller than the loss in a standard solar cell based on the same active materials. We demonstrate this by stacking five separately prepared ST cells on top of each other, to obtain a higher photocurrent than in an optimized standard solar cell.

semi-transparent solar cells

interlayer

conjugated polymers

performance

polymer

tandem solar cells

fill factors

modified cathode

thin-films

polymer solar cells

photovoltaic devices

expressions

interface

Author

Z. Tang

Linköping University

Zandra George

Chalmers, Chemical and Biological Engineering, Polymer Technology

Z. F. Ma

Linköping University

J. Bergqvist

Linköping University

K. Tvingstedt

Linköping University

K. Vandewal

Linköping University

Ergang Wang

Chalmers, Chemical and Biological Engineering, Polymer Technology

L. M. Andersson

Linköping University

Mats Andersson

Chalmers, Chemical and Biological Engineering, Polymer Technology

Fengling Zhang

Linköping University

Olle Inganäs

Linköping University

Advanced Energy Materials

1614-6832 (ISSN) 1614-6840 (eISSN)

Vol. 2 12 1467-1476

Subject Categories

Polymer Technologies

Other Environmental Engineering

DOI

10.1002/aenm.201200204

More information

Latest update

2/28/2018