title: Improved electronic coupling in hybrid organic-inorganic nanocomposites employing thiol-functionalized P3HT and bismuth sulfide nanocrystals.
abstract: In this study, we employ a thiol-functionalized polymer (P3HT-SH) as a leverage to tailor the nanomorphology and electronic coupling in polymer-nanocrystal composites for hybrid solar cells. The presence of the thiol functional group allows for a highly crystalline semiconducting polymer film at low thiol content and allows for improved nanomorphologies in hybrid organic-inorganic systems when employing non-toxic bismuth sulfide nanocrystals. The exciton dissociation efficiency and carrier dynamics at this hybrid heterojunction are investigated through photoluminescence quenching and transient absorption spectroscopy measurements, revealing a larger degree of polaron formation when P3HT-SH is employed, suggesting an increased electronic interaction between the metal chalcogenide nanocrystals and the thiol-functionalized P3HT. The fabricated photovoltaic devices show 15% higher power conversion efficiencies as a result of the improved nanomorphology and better charge transfer mechanism together with the higher open circuit voltages arising from the deeper energy levels of P3HT-SH.
authors.affiliation: ICFO-Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, Mediterranean Technology Park, 08860, Castelldefels, Barcelona, Spain. gerasimos.konstantatos@icfo.es.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Martinez
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Chemistry, School of Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8656, Japan.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Higuchi
authors.affiliation: Centre for Plastic Electronics and Department of Chemistry, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, Exhibition Road, SW7 2AZ, UK.
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: MacLachlan
authors.affiliation: ICFO-Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, Mediterranean Technology Park, 08860, Castelldefels, Barcelona, Spain. gerasimos.konstantatos@icfo.es.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Stavrinadis
authors.affiliation: ICFO-Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, Mediterranean Technology Park, 08860, Castelldefels, Barcelona, Spain. gerasimos.konstantatos@icfo.es.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Cates
authors.affiliation: ICFO-Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, Mediterranean Technology Park, 08860, Castelldefels, Barcelona, Spain. gerasimos.konstantatos@icfo.es.
authors.forename: S L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Diedenhofen
authors.affiliation: ICFO-Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, Mediterranean Technology Park, 08860, Castelldefels, Barcelona, Spain. gerasimos.konstantatos@icfo.es.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bernechea
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sweetnam
authors.affiliation: Centre for Plastic Electronics and Department of Chemistry, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, Exhibition Road, SW7 2AZ, UK.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.affiliation: Centre for Plastic Electronics and Department of Chemistry, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, Exhibition Road, SW7 2AZ, UK.
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Haque
authors.affiliation: RIKEN Center for Emergent Matter Science (CEMS), 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.|Japan Science and Technology Agency, Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology, 4-1-8 Honcho, Kawaguchi, Saitama 332-0012, Japan.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tajima
authors.affiliation: ICFO-Institut de Ciencies Fotoniques, Mediterranean Technology Park, 08860, Castelldefels, Barcelona, Spain. gerasimos.konstantatos@icfo.es.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Konstantatos