Silicon solar cells are currently widely used in practice, but in the face of problems such as the need for ultra-pure silicon and complex manufacturing technologies that increase the cost of final devices, alternative materials are being sought after. One of the most promising alternatives is perovskite solar cells. Their energy conversion efficiency has jumped from 4% to more than 25% in several years, and the efficiency of a tandem silicon/perovskite silicon solar cell is as high as 29%. These devices are also characterized by simplicity of construction and low cost. Although perovskite solar cells have achieved impressive efficiencies this is not enough to commercialize them. One of the main obstacles is transport of positive charge carriers. Currently used organic semiconductors utilize complex multi-component additive systems, which, among other things, have negative impact on the longevity of the whole element. One way to ensure good mobility and conductivity of carriers is self-assembly of the molecules into neat structures. Molecules of this type would solve two problems simultaneously: reduce device production complexity (no doping required) and increase long-term stability (removal of dopants reduces the possibility of device degradation). In order not to damage self-assembled structure during formation of the device layers, the molecules will be “glued” to each other by stronger covalent bonds using reactive functional groups. The expected result of the project is self-assembling organic semiconductors suitable for application in perovskite solar cells. By participating in this project, the young researcher will gain knowledge and practical experience in a promising field of research. The results of the project will be presented at a relevant scientific conference.
Project funding:
Project is funded by EU Structural Funds according to the 2014–2020 Operational Programme for the European Union Funds’ Investments priority “Development of scientific competence of researchers, other researchers, students through practical scientific activities” under Measure No. 09.3.3-LMT-K-712.
Project results:
In this study two triphenylamine derivatives with amide and reactive functional groups were synthesized and investigated. After evaluating thermal and optical properties of the obtained compounds and investigating formation of self-assembling systems, it was found that these compounds are promising and can aggregate and form self-assembling structures. When layers of the compounds were investigated, it was observed that the formation of orderly structures is relatively limited, therefore it is necessary to continue research in order to optimize the conditions of irradiation and coating.
Period of project implementation: 2020-11-03 - 2021-04-30
Project coordinator: Kaunas University of Technology
