The Role of Electron Affinity in Determining Whether Fullerenes Catalyze or Inhibit Photooxidation of Polymers for Solar Cells

Eric T. Hoke; I. T. Sachs-Quintana; Matthew T. Lloyd; Isaac Kauvar; William R. Mateker; Alexandre M. Nardes; Craig H. Peters; Nikos Kopidakis; Michael D. McGehee

doi:10.1002/aenm.201200169

The Role of Electron Affinity in Determining Whether Fullerenes Catalyze or Inhibit Photooxidation of Polymers for Solar Cells

Eric T. Hoke, I. T. Sachs-Quintana, Matthew T. Lloyd, Isaac Kauvar, William R. Mateker, Alexandre M. Nardes, Craig H. Peters, Nikos Kopidakis, Michael D. McGehee

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

149 Scopus citations

Abstract

Understanding the stability and degradation mechanisms of organic solar materials is critically important to achieving long device lifetimes. Here, an investigation of the photodegradation of polymer:fullerene blend fi lms exposed to ambient conditions for a variety of polymer and fullerene derivative combinations is presented. Despite the wide range in polymer stabilities to photodegradation, the rate of irreversible polymer photobleaching in blend fi lms is found to consistently and dramatically increase with decreasing electron affi nity of the fullerene derivative. Furthermore, blends containing fullerenes with the smallest electron affi nities photobleached at a faster rate than fi lms of the pure polymer. These observations can be explained by a mechanism where both the polymer and fullerene donate photogenerated electrons to diatomic oxygen to form the superoxide radical anion which degrades the polymer. © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	1351-1357
Number of pages	7
Journal	Advanced Energy Materials
Volume	2
Issue number	11
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.201200169
State	Published - May 21 2012
Externally published	Yes

Bibliographical note

KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2020-10-01
Acknowledged KAUST grant number(s): KUS-C1-015-21
Acknowledgements: E.T.H., I.T.S.Q., and M.T.L. contributed equally to this work. This publication was supported by the Center for Advanced Molecular Photovoltaics (Award No KUS-C1-015-21), made by King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). M.T.L, A.M.N and N.K. acknowledge support from the US Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC36-08-GO28308 with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory through the DOE SETP program. We thank Plextronics for providing some of the fullerenes (ICMA, ICBA, and ICTA) and LG providing the sulfur plasma lamps. We thank H.-J. Egelhaaf for helpful discussions. Additional support was provided for E.T.H. by the Fannie and John Hertz Foundation, for I.T.S.Q. by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and I. K. was supported by the DOE SULI fellowship program.
This publication acknowledges KAUST support, but has no KAUST affiliated authors.

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@article{e7f8603228cd4fb8bfe4ba4b44e10d2c,

title = "The Role of Electron Affinity in Determining Whether Fullerenes Catalyze or Inhibit Photooxidation of Polymers for Solar Cells",

abstract = "Understanding the stability and degradation mechanisms of organic solar materials is critically important to achieving long device lifetimes. Here, an investigation of the photodegradation of polymer:fullerene blend fi lms exposed to ambient conditions for a variety of polymer and fullerene derivative combinations is presented. Despite the wide range in polymer stabilities to photodegradation, the rate of irreversible polymer photobleaching in blend fi lms is found to consistently and dramatically increase with decreasing electron affi nity of the fullerene derivative. Furthermore, blends containing fullerenes with the smallest electron affi nities photobleached at a faster rate than fi lms of the pure polymer. These observations can be explained by a mechanism where both the polymer and fullerene donate photogenerated electrons to diatomic oxygen to form the superoxide radical anion which degrades the polymer. {\textcopyright} 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co.",

author = "Hoke, {Eric T.} and Sachs-Quintana, {I. T.} and Lloyd, {Matthew T.} and Isaac Kauvar and Mateker, {William R.} and Nardes, {Alexandre M.} and Peters, {Craig H.} and Nikos Kopidakis and McGehee, {Michael D.}",

note = "KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2020-10-01 Acknowledged KAUST grant number(s): KUS-C1-015-21 Acknowledgements: E.T.H., I.T.S.Q., and M.T.L. contributed equally to this work. This publication was supported by the Center for Advanced Molecular Photovoltaics (Award No KUS-C1-015-21), made by King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). M.T.L, A.M.N and N.K. acknowledge support from the US Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC36-08-GO28308 with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory through the DOE SETP program. We thank Plextronics for providing some of the fullerenes (ICMA, ICBA, and ICTA) and LG providing the sulfur plasma lamps. We thank H.-J. Egelhaaf for helpful discussions. Additional support was provided for E.T.H. by the Fannie and John Hertz Foundation, for I.T.S.Q. by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and I. K. was supported by the DOE SULI fellowship program. This publication acknowledges KAUST support, but has no KAUST affiliated authors.",

year = "2012",

month = may,

day = "21",

doi = "10.1002/aenm.201200169",

language = "English (US)",

volume = "2",

pages = "1351--1357",

journal = "Advanced Energy Materials",

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T1 - The Role of Electron Affinity in Determining Whether Fullerenes Catalyze or Inhibit Photooxidation of Polymers for Solar Cells

AU - Hoke, Eric T.

AU - Sachs-Quintana, I. T.

AU - Lloyd, Matthew T.

AU - Kauvar, Isaac

AU - Mateker, William R.

AU - Nardes, Alexandre M.

AU - Peters, Craig H.

AU - Kopidakis, Nikos

AU - McGehee, Michael D.

N1 - KAUST Repository Item: Exported on 2020-10-01 Acknowledged KAUST grant number(s): KUS-C1-015-21 Acknowledgements: E.T.H., I.T.S.Q., and M.T.L. contributed equally to this work. This publication was supported by the Center for Advanced Molecular Photovoltaics (Award No KUS-C1-015-21), made by King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). M.T.L, A.M.N and N.K. acknowledge support from the US Department of Energy under Contract No. DE-AC36-08-GO28308 with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory through the DOE SETP program. We thank Plextronics for providing some of the fullerenes (ICMA, ICBA, and ICTA) and LG providing the sulfur plasma lamps. We thank H.-J. Egelhaaf for helpful discussions. Additional support was provided for E.T.H. by the Fannie and John Hertz Foundation, for I.T.S.Q. by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and I. K. was supported by the DOE SULI fellowship program. This publication acknowledges KAUST support, but has no KAUST affiliated authors.

PY - 2012/5/21

Y1 - 2012/5/21

N2 - Understanding the stability and degradation mechanisms of organic solar materials is critically important to achieving long device lifetimes. Here, an investigation of the photodegradation of polymer:fullerene blend fi lms exposed to ambient conditions for a variety of polymer and fullerene derivative combinations is presented. Despite the wide range in polymer stabilities to photodegradation, the rate of irreversible polymer photobleaching in blend fi lms is found to consistently and dramatically increase with decreasing electron affi nity of the fullerene derivative. Furthermore, blends containing fullerenes with the smallest electron affi nities photobleached at a faster rate than fi lms of the pure polymer. These observations can be explained by a mechanism where both the polymer and fullerene donate photogenerated electrons to diatomic oxygen to form the superoxide radical anion which degrades the polymer. © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co.

AB - Understanding the stability and degradation mechanisms of organic solar materials is critically important to achieving long device lifetimes. Here, an investigation of the photodegradation of polymer:fullerene blend fi lms exposed to ambient conditions for a variety of polymer and fullerene derivative combinations is presented. Despite the wide range in polymer stabilities to photodegradation, the rate of irreversible polymer photobleaching in blend fi lms is found to consistently and dramatically increase with decreasing electron affi nity of the fullerene derivative. Furthermore, blends containing fullerenes with the smallest electron affi nities photobleached at a faster rate than fi lms of the pure polymer. These observations can be explained by a mechanism where both the polymer and fullerene donate photogenerated electrons to diatomic oxygen to form the superoxide radical anion which degrades the polymer. © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co.

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JO - Advanced Energy Materials

JF - Advanced Energy Materials

IS - 11

ER -

The Role of Electron Affinity in Determining Whether Fullerenes Catalyze or Inhibit Photooxidation of Polymers for Solar Cells

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