CAREER: Device Engineering for High-Performance Polymer Bulk Heterojunction Solar Cells

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Research Objectives and Approaches:The objective of this research is to address some major issues of polymer solar cells related to the efficiency and reliability, and enrich current understanding of the fundamental structure-property relationships involved in polymer photovoltaics. The approach is to engineer active layer morphology in both lateral and vertical directions using polymer brush structure with incorporation of block copolymer.Intellectual Merit: With controlled morphology from nanodomain pre-patterning followed by polymer brush growth, a composite bilayer structure will be built to facilitate both exciton dissociation and charge transport. The polymer brushes in the down layer provide direct pathways for hole transport, while the up donor-acceptor blend layer mediated by block copolymer keeps the large interfacial area for efficient exciton dissociation and harvesting. Moreover, the enhanced crystallinity and optimized vertical composition profile facilitate charge transport and collection. The fundamental structure-property relationships, such as how chain conformation and packing from polymer brush and block copolymer affect efficiency and thermal stability, will be systematically studied.Broader Impact:This CAREER project presents synergistic integration of interdisciplinary research and education. The outcome will impact society by implementing multidisciplinary education and outreach programs. It will provide graduate and undergraduate students with substantial multidisciplinary trainings which are essential for success in their future careers. The outreach to 7th-12th grade minority students will be accomplished through the PI?s participation in Alabama Black Belt program, in which the PI develops scientific modules on nanotechnology and solar energy and provides trainings for teachers from secondary schools in Alabama.