Browsing by Author "Budiawan, Widhya"

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Asymmetric Benzotrithiophene-Based Hole Transporting Materials Provide High-Efficiency Perovskite Solar Cells
(2020-07-01)
Budiawan, Widhya
;
Lai, Kuan-Wen
;
Karuppuswamy, Priyadharsini
;
Jadhav, Tushar Sanjay
;
Lu, Yen-An
In this study, we synthesized a series of small-molecule benzotrithiophenes (BTTs) and used them as hole transporting materials (HTMs) in perovskite solar cells (PSCs). The asymmetric benzo[2,1-b:-3,4-b':5,6-b"]trithiophene unit was used as the central core to which were appended various donor groups, namely, carbazole (BTT-CB), thieno thiophene (BTT-FT), triphenylamine (BTT-TPA), and bithiophene (BTT-TT). The extended aromatic core in the asymmetric BTT provided full planarity, thereby favoring intermolecular pi-stacking and charge transport. The physical, optical, and electrical properties of these small-molecule HTMs are reported herein. BTT-TT displayed good crystallinity and superior hole mobility, when compared with those of the other three HTMs, and formed smooth and uniform surfaces when covering the perovskite active layer. Accordingly, among the devices prepared in this study, a PSC incorporating BTT-TT as the HTM achieved the highest power conversion efficiency (18.58%). Moreover, this BTT-TT-containing device exhibited good stability after storage for more than 700 h. Thus, asymmetric BTTs are promising candidate materials for use as small-molecule HTMs in PSCs.
Controlled mechanical cleavage of bulk niobium diselenide to nanoscaled sheet, rod, and particle structures for Pt-free dye-sensitized solar cells
(2014)
Ibrahem, Mohammed Aziz
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Huang, Wei-Chih
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Lan, Tian-wey
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Boopathi, Karunakara Moorthy
;
Hsiao, Yu-Chen
In this study, we report a one-step process for the preparation of NbSe2 nanosheets, nanorods and nanoparticles from pristine materials under the effects of shear and friction forces. Nevertheless, simple and facile methods for the large-scale syntheses of well-defined NbSe2 nanostructures in high yield have yet to be realized and that will have a great impact in a wide range of applications. For example, developing platinum (Pt)-free and highly efficient counter electrodes is meaningful and necessary for the cost reduction of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). By integrating this approach with a simple method of thin film preparation (spray coating) allowed us to prepare large-area, conductive, semitransparent flexible thin films of NbSe2. We have used microscopic and macroscopic methods to examine the morphologies, compositions, crystallinity, and electrical and optical properties of the converted NbSe2 nanostructures. DSSCs with NbSe2 nanosheet counter electrodes (CEs) achieved a conversion efficiency of 7.73%, superior to an efficiency of 7.01% for Pt-based CEs. Our NbSe2 nanostructure provides a cost-effective CE alternative to the noble metal Pt in DSSCs.
Enhanced Organic Solar Cell Performance by Lateral Side Chain Engineering on Benzodithiophene-Based Small Molecules
(2018-08-01)
Patra, Dhananjaya
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Budiawan, Widhya
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Huang, Tzu-Yen
;
Wei, Kung-Hwa
;
Wang, Pen-Cheng
The three novel acceptor-donor-acceptor (A-D-A) conjugated small molecules were synthesized, each featuring a benzodithiophene (BDT) core presenting lateral flexible side chains: TB-BDT6T substituted with 2-ethynyl-5-octylthiophene, TS-BDT6T substituted with 2-(octylthio)-thiophene, and TT-BDT6T substituted with 2-(2-ethylhexyl)-thieno[3,2-b]thiophene groups. The lateral incorporation of functionalized pi-conjugated flexible side chains, without altering the end-capped acceptor (cyanoacetate) moieties, amended the optoelectronic properties of these BDT-based small molecules. X-ray diffraction spectroscopy revealed that these small molecules possess high crystallinity; moreover, the optimized blend film morphologies, recorded using atomic force microscopy, revealed miscibility with PC61BM, and turn out nanoscale phase separations. The energy levels of the highest occupied and lowest unoccupied molecular orbitals of these small molecules were allowed, leading to high open-circuit voltages (V-oc) for their solar cell devices. The bulk heterojunction small-molecule solar cell based on TT-BDT6T:PC61BM blend presented the highest power conversion efficiency (5.80%) with a high value of V-oc of 0.98 V, a short circuit density of 9.49 mA cm(-2), and a fill factor of 62.44% under AM 1.5G irradiation (100 mW cm(-2)).