Unipolar n-Type Semiconducting Polymers: Synthesis, Electron Transport, and Use in All-Polymer Solar Cells

非技术总结：社会对新型材料和设备的需求很大，这些材料和设备可能使太阳能转换技术与化石燃料相比具有成本竞争力。在这个项目中要研究的聚合物材料制成的太阳能电池提供了更热，化学和光化学坚固，更便宜，更容易大规模制造的潜力相比，目前更广泛研究的聚合物/富勒烯对应物。 PI和他的团队将为这些材料创建构建模块，研究它们的结构和特性，并制造由这些新材料制成的太阳能电池，以研究它们的电子特性和性能。 除了该项目的潜在技术影响外，其他更广泛的影响将包括：（1）在能源技术材料领域教育研究生和本科生;（2）通过将该项目的结果纳入研究生和本科生课程，制定和改进课程;（3）通过期刊出版物、会议报告传播项目成果，并通过组织研讨会促进各学科之间关于太阳能的思想交流;及（4）与西雅图的太平洋科学中心合作，为公众带来有关太阳能及塑胶材料的互动展览。PI将继续和扩大他长期参与的妇女和少数民族学生在他的研究program.Technical摘要：本项目的总体目标是合成和研究新的单极n型半导体聚合物具有高电子迁移率，一系列的能量水平，高结晶度，和高分子量适合用作电子受体组件在高效的全聚合物本体异质结太阳能电池。计划中的研究有三个相互关联的科学目标：（i）设计、合成和开发基于萘二酰亚胺（NDI）结构单元和最近发现的苯并荧蒽二酰亚胺（BFI）结构单元的新型单极电子接受（n型）共轭聚合物半导体;（ii）利用有机场-效应晶体管和空间电荷限制电流（SCLC）技术;和（iii）制造全聚合物BHJ太阳能电池，将新的受体聚合物和研究其纳米级形态，光伏和电荷传输特性，和潜在的结构-性能-器件性能的关系。 其中要探讨的问题是：可溶性n型聚合物半导体的开发，竞争对手或超越广泛研究的富勒烯在光伏性能？全聚合物太阳能电池与聚合物/富勒烯系统的器件效率损失机制有多相似或不同？ 揭开这些问题的答案将产生基本的新的物理见解，以支持低成本有机光化学的进步。 研究生将参与拟议研究的各个方面，使PI的教育和研究计划的整合。

NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY:There is a major societal need for novel materials and devices that could potentially render solar energy conversion technologies cost-competitive with fossil fuels. Solar cells made of the polymeric materials to be investigated in this project offer the potential to be more thermally, chemically and photochemically rugged, cheaper, and more readily manufacturable on a large scale compared to the currently more widely studied polymer/fullerene counterparts. The PI and his group will create the building blocks for these materials, study their structures and properties, and fabricate solar cells made of these new materials for investigation of their electronic properties and performance. In addition to the potential technological impacts of this project, other broader impacts will include: (1) educating graduate and undergraduate students in the field of materials for energy technologies; (2) developing and improving curricula by integrating the results of this project into courses for graduate and undergraduate students; (3) disseminating the project results through journal publications, conference presentations, and fostering cross-fertilization of ideas on solar energy among various disciplines through organization of symposia; and (4) partnering with the Pacific Science Center (PSC) of Seattle to bring interactive exhibits on solar energy and plastic materials to the general public. The PI will continue and expand his long-standing involvement of women and minority students in his research program.TECHNICAL SUMMARY:The overall goal of this project is to synthesize and investigate new unipolar n-type semiconducting polymers with high electron mobility, a range of energy levels, high crystallinity, and high molecular weights suitable for use as the electron acceptor component in highly efficient all-polymer bulk heterojunction solar cells. The planned research has three interrelated scientific objectives: (i) design, synthesize, and develop new unipolar electron-accepting (n-type) conjugated polymer semiconductors based on naphthalene diimide (NDI) building blocks and recently discovered benzofluoroanthene diimide (BFI) building blocks; (ii) investigate the bulk and field-effect electron transport properties of the new acceptor semiconducting polymers by means of organic field-effect transistor and space charge limited current (SCLC) techniques; and (iii) fabricate all-polymer BHJ solar cells incorporating the new acceptor polymers and investigate their nanoscale morphology, photovoltaic and charge transport properties, and underlying structure-property-device performance relationships. Among the questions to be explored are: Can soluble n-type polymer semiconductors be developed that rival or surpass the widely studied fullerenes in photovoltaic performance? How similar or different are the device efficiency loss mechanisms in all-polymer solar cells versus polymer/fullerene systems? Uncovering the answers to these questions will produce basic new physical insights to underpin the advancement of low-cost organic photovoltaics. Graduate students will be engaged in all facets of the proposed research, enabling the integration of the educational and research programs of the PI.