A series of purely organic small molecules 1–4 based on bis(arylene ethynylene)s with various electron-rich aromatic bridges, such as benzene, cyclopentadithiophene (CDT), and diphenyl(p-tolyl)amine, were synthesized by a Sonogashira coupling reaction. Their optical, electronic, and electrochemical properties were fully characterized. The photovoltaic properties of these molecules as donor materials and [6,6]-phenyl-C₇₁-butyric acid methyl ester as an acceptor material in solution-processed bulk heterojunction devices were studied. Among them, CDT-bridged molecule 2 exhibited the best photovoltaic performance and achieved a power conversion efficiency of 3.28 %. In addition, the photovoltaic efficiencies of these molecules are higher than their corresponding platinum-containing counterparts, probably owing to their stronger light absorption and improved open-circuit voltage.

We have studied the properties of organic and organometallic polymers based on a similar chemical structure to elucidate the influence of the metal center on the optical and electronic properties of the polymers as well as their photovoltaic performance. Detailed characterization of the optical properties of both polymers is performed and film morphology and photovoltaic performance are compared. Metal-containing polymers exhibit red-shifted absorption and under optimal processing conditions exhibit different film morphology compared with the metal-free ones. Our results indicate that organometallic polymers represent a promising class of compounds for improved performance in photovoltaic cells.

Four new solution-processible small-molecular platinum(II)–bis(aryleneethynylene) complexes consisting of benzothiadiazole as the electron acceptor and triphenylamine and/or thiophene as the electron donor were conveniently synthesized and characterized by physicochemical and computational methods, and utilized as the electron-donor materials in the fabrication of solution-processed bulk heterojunction (BHJ) solar cells. The effect of different electron-donor groups in these small molecules on the optoelectronic and photovoltaic properties was also examined. The optical and time-dependent density functional theory studies showed that the incorporation of stronger electron-donor groups significantly enhanced the solar-absorption abilities of the complexes. These molecular complexes can serve as good electron donors for fabricating BHJ devices by blending them with the [6,6]-phenyl-C₇₁-butyric acid methyl ester (PC₇₀BM) as the electron acceptor. The best power conversion efficiency of 2.37 % was achieved with the open-circuit voltage of 0.83 V, short-circuit current density of 7.10 mA cm⁻² and fill factor of 0.40 under illumination of an AM 1.5 solar-cell simulator. The spin-coated thin films showed p-channel field-effect charge transport with hole mobilities of up to 2.4×10⁻⁴ cm² V⁻¹ s⁻¹ for these molecules. The present work illuminates the potential of well-defined organometallic complexes in developing light-harvesting small molecules for efficient power generation in organic photovoltaics implementation.

We report an efficient non-doped all-polymer polymer white-light-emitting diode (PWLED) with a fluorescent three-color, white single polymer as an emissive layer, an ethanol-soluble phosphonate-functionalized polyfluorene (PF-EP) as an electron-injection/electron-transport layer, and LiF/Al as a cathode, respectively. The all-polymer PWLED achieves a peak external quantum efficiency of 6.7%, a forward viewing luminous efficiency of 15.4 cd A⁻¹ and a power efficiency of 11.4 lm W⁻¹, respectively, at a brightness of 347 cd m⁻² with Commission Internationale d’Eclairage coordinates of (0.37, 0.42) and color rendering index of 85, which is the best results among the non-doped PWLEDs. Moreover, this kind of PWLED not only shows excellent color stability, but also achieves high brightness at low voltages. The brightness reaches 1000, 10000, and 46830 cd m⁻² at voltages of 4.5, 5.4, and 7.5 V, respectively. The significant enhancement of white-single-polymer-based PWLEDs with PF-EP/LiF/Al to replace for the commonly used Ca/Al cathode is attributed to the more efficient electron injection at PF-EP/LiF/Al interfaces, and the coordinated protecting effect of PF-EP from diffusion of Al atoms into the emissive layer and exciton-quenching near cathode interfaces. The developed highly efficient non-doped all-polymer PWLEDs are well suitable for solution-processing technology and provide a huge potential of low-cost large-area manufacturing for PWLEDs.

Nanoscale-phase separation of electron donor/acceptor blends is crucial for efficient charge generation and collection in polymer bulk heterojunction photovoltaic cells. We investigated solvent vapor annealing effect of poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT)/methanofullerene (PCBM) blend on its morphology and optoelectronic properties. The organic solvents of choice for the treatment have a major effect on the morphology of P3HT/PCBM blend and the device performance. Ultraviolet-visible absorption spectroscopy shows that specific solvent vapor annealing can induce P3HT self-assembling to form well-ordered structure; and hence, the absorption in the red region and the hole transport are enhanced. The solvent that has a poor solubility to PCBM would cause large PCBM clusters and result in a rough blend film. By combining an appropriate solvent vapor treatment and post-thermal annealing of the devices, the power conversion efficiency is enhanced. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2009

Two new stepladder conjugated polymers, that is, poly(7,7,15,15-tetraoctyldinaphtho[1,2-a:1′,2′-g]-s-indacene) (PONSI) and poly(7,7,15,15-tetra(4-octylphenyl)dinaphtho[1,2-a:1′,2′-g]-s-indacene) (PANSI) with alkyl and aryl substituents, respectively, have been synthesized and characterized. In comparison with poly(indenofluorene)s, both polymers have extended conjugation at the direction perpendicular to the polymer backbone because of the introduction of naphthalene moieties. The emission color of the polymers in film state is strongly dependent on the substituents. While PONSI emits at a maximum of 463 nm, PANSI with the same backbone but aryl substituents displays dramatically redshifted emission with a maximum at 494 nm. Both polymers show stable photoluminescence spectra while annealing at 200 °C in inert atmosphere. The PONSI-based devices with the configuration of ITO/PEDOT:PSS/polymer/Ca/Al turn on at 3.7 V, and emit at a maximum of 461 nm with the CIE coordinates of (0.19, 0.26), a maximum luminance efficiency of 1.40 cd/A, and a maximum brightness of 2036 cd/m² at 13 V. Meanwhile, the emission color of the devices is independent of driving voltage and keeps unchanged during the continuous operation. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 46: 4866–4878, 2008