title: Direct patterning of conductive polymer domains for photovoltaic devices.
abstract: We report a simple approach to control the morphology of polymer/fullerene solar cells based on electron-beam patterning of polymer semiconductors. This process generates conductive nanostructures or microstructures through an in situ cross-linking reaction, where the size, shape, and density of polymer domains are all tunable parameters. Cross-linked polymer structures are resistant to heat and solvents, so they can be incorporated into devices that require thermal annealing or solution-based processing. We demonstrate this method by building "gradient" and nanostructured poly(3-hexylthiophene)/fullerene solar cells. The power-conversion efficiency of these model devices improves with increasing interfacial area. The flexible methodology can be used to study the effects of active layer design on optoelectronic function.
authors: Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Houston, Houston, Texas 77204-4004, United States.
authors: Suchanun
authors: S
authors: Moungthai
authors: Nikhila
authors: N
authors: Mahadevapuram
authors: Paul
authors: P
authors: Ruchhoeft
authors: Gila E
authors: GE
authors: Stein