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The Role of Hole Transport in Hybrid Inorganic/Organic Silicon/Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxy-thiophene):Poly(styrenesulfonate) Heterojunction Solar Cells

In this paper, the fundamental advantage of highly conductive transparent polymers as hole transport layers in hybrid solar cells is demonstrated. The substantial efficiency improvement of hybrid n-type silicon (n-Si)/poly(3,4-ethylene­dioxy-thiophene):poly(styrene­sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) solar cells...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of physical chemistry. C 2013-05, Vol.117 (18), p.9049-9055
Main Authors: Pietsch, Matthias, Bashouti, Muhammad Y, Christiansen, Silke
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:In this paper, the fundamental advantage of highly conductive transparent polymers as hole transport layers in hybrid solar cells is demonstrated. The substantial efficiency improvement of hybrid n-type silicon (n-Si)/poly(3,4-ethylene­dioxy-thiophene):poly(styrene­sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) solar cells by adding organic solvents to the polymer dispersion is investigated, and a model that explains reasons and mechanisms for that improvement is given. Open-circuit voltages of 600 mV were measured, which are comparable to conventional diffused silicon pn-junction wafer cells. It is shown by means of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy that the PEDOT versus PSS ratio plays an important role for charge carrier transport in the PEDOT:PSS layer as well as for charge carrier separation at the n-Si/PEDOT:PSS interface. A shell of insulating PSS segregates at the surface of PEDOT:PSS grains and represents a considerable barrier for charge carrier transport and charge carrier separation, influencing the conductivity of the polymer film and the open-circuit voltage of a processed solar cell, respectively. It could be demonstrated that a mixing of the PEDOT:PSS polymer blend with the organic solvent dimethyl­sulfoxide reduces the PSS insulator segregation at the surface of PEDOT:PSS grains and improves the performance of hybrid n-Si/PEDOT:PSS solar cells.
ISSN:1932-7447
1932-7455
DOI:10.1021/jp308349f