SUPERGEN Excitonic Solar Cell Consortium - MAIN CORE
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Warwick
Department Name: Chemistry
Abstract
Excitonic Solar Cells (ESCs) are a class of non-conventional solar cells, based on organic and nanostructured materials, in which the charge carriers are generated and simultaneously separated across a heterointerface. They include dye-sensitized nanocrystalline cells, organic cells and hybrid organic-inorganic cells, and in all cases cell fabrication can be achieved using low cost, large area deposition methods on both rigid and flexible substrates. Consequently, ESCs offer genuine medium to long term prospects for reducing the cost of PV below the commercially important threshold of $1 per watt peak. To date work on all types of ESC has been largely restricted to basic studies in academic and national research laboratories, with particular emphasis on improving device understanding and cell efficiency, which are 11% for state of the art dye cells, and much lower for the less well developed organic (4-5%) and hybrid cells (2-3%). However, progress in all types of ESC has undoubtedly been impressive in recent years, with research activity growing rapidly throughout the world. Major improvements in performance have been demonstrated in all cell types with the SUPERGEN Consortium at the forefront of much of this progress. There have also been initial steps to commercialise some ESCs, with the first manufacturing plant to produce dye sensitised cells opening in the UK in 2007. However, much fundamental research still needs to be carried out, in particular on the less well developed organic and hybrid cells, but also on the more mature dye cells where many important challenges must be addressed to enable future successful commercialisation. The UK is in an excellent position to lead this activity in an emerging area of PV technology and renewed SUPERGEN funding will enable the Consortium to remain at the forefront of innovative research, while exploiting its strong connections to a number of relevant commercial organisations.Our proposed Main Core programme builds on the successes of our first SUPERGEN project which benefited strongly from the integration of expertise and knowledge in the two main areas of excitonic solar cells, namely dye sensitised cells and organic cells. We will continue to promote cross-fertilisation of ideas for optimising existing cell types and for innovating new types of cells, with the overall aim of improving the performance of different types of ESC. Training will remain a key priority for the Consortium and the exchange of PDRAs and PhD students between the partner universities will ensure the highest quality multi-disciplinary research environment. The UK has a very strong international position in research into ESCs and the renewal of the SUPERGEN programme will help ensure it remains both competitive and innovative in future years.
Organisations
Publications
Hou B
(2013)
Initial stages in the formation of Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 nanoparticles.
in Chemistry (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany)
Bansal N
(2013)
Solution Processed Polymer-Inorganic Semiconductor Solar Cells Employing Sb 2 S 3 as a Light Harvesting and Electron Transporting Material
in Advanced Energy Materials
Kirchartz T
(2013)
On the Differences between Dark and Light Ideality Factor in Polymer:Fullerene Solar Cells
in The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters
Urbina A
(2013)
Work function engineering of ZnO electrodes by using p-type and n-type doped carbon nanotubes
in Nanotechnology
Bansal N
(2013)
Influence of crystallinity and energetics on charge separation in polymer-inorganic nanocomposite films for solar cells.
in Scientific reports
Cappel U
(2013)
Charge Generation Dynamics in CdS:P3HT Blends for Hybrid Solar Cells
in The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters
Bruno A
(2013)
Determining the Exciton Diffusion Length in a Polyfluorene from Ultrafast Fluorescence Measurements of Polymer/Fullerene Blend Films
in The Journal of Physical Chemistry C
Hellmann C
(2013)
Controlling the interaction of light with polymer semiconductors.
in Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)
Beatrup D
(2014)
Polaron stability in semiconducting polymer neat films.
in Chemical communications (Cambridge, England)
Hewat TE
(2014)
Neutral copper(I) dipyrrin complexes and their use as sensitizers in dye-sensitized solar cells.
in Dalton transactions (Cambridge, England : 2003)
Etherington M
(2014)
Recombination pathways in polymer:fullerene photovoltaics observed through spin polarization measurements
in Applied Physics Letters
Li C
(2014)
Built-in potential shift and Schottky-barrier narrowing in organic solar cells with UV-sensitive electron transport layers.
in Physical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP
Vaissier V
(2014)
Effect of Molecular Fluctuations on Hole Diffusion within Dye Monolayers
in Chemistry of Materials
Kirchartz T
(2014)
Multiscale Modelling of Organic and Hybrid Photovoltaics
Kim J
(2014)
Germanium- and Silicon-Substituted Donor-Acceptor Type Copolymers: Effect of the Bridging Heteroatom on Molecular Packing and Photovoltaic Device Performance
in Advanced Energy Materials
Dattani R
(2014)
A general mechanism for controlling thin film structures in all-conjugated block copolymer:fullerene blends
in J. Mater. Chem. A
Grew B
(2014)
High Mobility Titanium-doped Indium Oxide for Use in Tandem Solar Cells Deposited via Pulsed DC Magnetron Sputtering
in Energy Procedia
Bünzli C
(2014)
Deep Surface Trap States at ZnO Nanorods Arrays
in MRS Proceedings
Lindblad R
(2014)
Energy level alignment in TiO2/metal sulfide/polymer interfaces for solar cell applications.
in Physical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP
Bannock J
(2014)
Controlled synthesis of conjugated random copolymers in a droplet-based microreactor
in Mater. Horiz.
Hou B
(2014)
Rapid phosphine-free synthesis of CdSe quantum dots: promoting the generation of Se precursors using a radical initiator
in J. Mater. Chem. A
Wood S
(2014)
In situ formation of organic-inorganic hybrid nanostructures for photovoltaic applications.
in Faraday discussions
Dimitrov S
(2014)
Towards optimisation of photocurrent from fullerene excitons in organic solar cells
in Energy & Environmental Science
Bailey J
(2014)
Understanding the role of ultra-thin polymeric interlayers in improving efficiency of polymer light emitting diodes
in Journal of Applied Physics
Beaumont N
(2014)
Acceptor Properties of Boron Subphthalocyanines in Fullerene Free Photovoltaics
in The Journal of Physical Chemistry C
Pockett A
(2015)
Characterization of Planar Lead Halide Perovskite Solar Cells by Impedance Spectroscopy, Open-Circuit Photovoltage Decay, and Intensity-Modulated Photovoltage/Photocurrent Spectroscopy
in The Journal of Physical Chemistry C
Shoaee S
(2015)
A Comparison of Charge Separation Dynamics in Organic Blend Films Employing Fullerene and Perylene Diimide Electron Acceptors.
in The journal of physical chemistry letters
Manke F
(2015)
Influence of a nearby substrate on the reorganization energy of hole exchange between dye molecules.
in Physical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP
Vaissier V
(2015)
Influence of Intermolecular Interactions on the Reorganization Energy of Charge Transfer between Surface-Attached Dye Molecules
in The Journal of Physical Chemistry C
Wheeler S
(2015)
Influence of Surface Recombination on Charge-Carrier Kinetics in Organic Bulk Heterojunction Solar Cells with Nickel Oxide Interlayers
in Physical Review Applied
Wade J
(2015)
Operational electrochemical stability of thiophene-thiazole copolymers probed by resonant Raman spectroscopy.
in The Journal of chemical physics
Kim J
(2015)
Morphology-performance relationships in polymer/fullerene blends probed by complementary characterisation techniques - effects of nanowire formation and subsequent thermal annealing
in Journal of Materials Chemistry C
Vaissier V
(2016)
How mobile are dye adsorbates and acetonitrile molecules on the surface of TiO2 nanoparticles? A quasi-elastic neutron scattering study.
in Scientific reports
Kirchartz T
(2016)
Reciprocity between Charge Injection and Extraction and Its Influence on the Interpretation of Electroluminescence Spectra in Organic Solar Cells
in Physical Review Applied
Ben Dkhil S
(2017)
P-type semiconductor surfactant modified zinc oxide nanorods for hybrid bulk heterojunction solar cells
in Solar Energy Materials and Solar Cells
Hou B
(2021)
Synthetic Mechanism Studies of Iron Selenides: An Emerging Class of Materials for Electrocatalysis
in Catalysts