Investigation of Degradation in Polythiophene-Fullerene Based Solar Cells

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2010-01-01
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Putnam, Daniel
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Sumit Chaudhary
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Materials Science and Engineering
Materials engineers create new materials and improve existing materials. Everything is limited by the materials that are used to produce it. Materials engineers understand the relationship between the properties of a material and its internal structure — from the macro level down to the atomic level. The better the materials, the better the end result — it’s as simple as that.
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Materials Science and Engineering
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This dissertation investigates the degradation of conjugated polymer poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT). Specifically, exposure of polymer solutions to air and light, and aging of thin films in air and dark has been probed. Solutions of either P3HT or blend of P3HT and phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) were mixed in air and light, and also in dark and inert atmosphere. Thin films of these solutions where then spin coated for UV-vis and Raman characterization. Hole only diodes and photovoltaic devices were also realized and characterized for mobility measurements and photovoltaic performance. Characterizations were repeated after aging the thin films in dark and air for two weeks, and then again after a short annealing at elevated temperature. PCBM was found to reduce the magnitude of P3HT degradation. Solutions mixed in dark and argon were found to respond with a reduction of absorption characteristics when annealed. Solutions mixed in light and air were found to respond with an increase in absorption characteristics when annealed.

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Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 UTC 2010