Polymer solar cell

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10879478-B2
Application number	US-201816155900-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 10, 2018
Priority date	Apr 16, 2018
Publication date	Dec 29, 2020
Grant date	Dec 29, 2020

Abstract

A polymer solar cell includes an anode electrode, a photoactive layer, an insulating layer, a cathode electrode stacked on each other in that order. The photoactive layer includes a polymer layer and a plurality of carbon nanotubes dispersed in the polymer layer. Each of the plurality of carbon nanotubes includes a first end and a second end opposite to the first end, the first end passes through the insulating layer and is in direct contact with the cathode electrode, and the second end is embedded in the polymer layer.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A polymer solar cell, comprising:
an anode electrode, a photoactive layer, an insulating layer, a cathode electrode stacked on each other in that order; the photoactive layer comprising a polymer layer and a plurality of carbon nanotubes dispersed in the polymer layer;
wherein the plurality of carbon nanotubes are substantially parallel to each other, each of the plurality of carbon nanotubes comprises a first end and a second end opposite to the first end, the first end of each of the plurality of carbon nanotubes is exposed out of the polymer layer and passes through the insulating layer to be in direct contact with the cathode electrode, and the second end is embedded in the polymer layer; the polymer layer comprises a first polymer surface being in direct contact with the insulating layer, and an angle of greater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees is formed between length directions of the plurality of carbon nanotubes and the first polymer surface; and there is only a single material between adjacent two of the plurality of carbon nanotubes in the photoactive layer.

2. The polymer solar cell of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of carbon nanotubes are spaced apart from each other.

3. The polymer solar cell of claim 1 , wherein the first end is embedded into the cathode electrode.

4. The polymer solar cell of claim 1 , wherein the first end is flush with a surface of the insulating layer away from the polymer layer.

5. The polymer solar cell of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of carbon nanotubes substantially extend along the same direction.

6. The polymer solar cell of claim 1 , further comprising a reflective layer located on a surface of the cathode electrode away from the insulating layer, a surface of the substrate away from anode electrode, or a surface of the anode electrode.

7. The polymer solar cell of claim 1 , further comprising an exciton blocking layer located between the photoactive layer and the anode electrode.

8. The polymer solar cell of claim 1 , further comprising an exciton blocking layer located between the photoactive layer and the insulating layer.

9. The polymer solar cell of claim 1 , wherein a portion of each of the plurality of carbon nanotubes is in direct contact with the polymer layer.

10. The polymer solar cell of claim 1 , wherein the photoactive layer consists of the polymer layer with a single material and the plurality of carbon nanotubes; and the photoactive layer is between the anode electrode and the insulating layer, the photoactive layer is in direct contact with the anode electrode, and the photoactive layer is in direct contact with the insulating layer.

11. The polymer solar cell of claim 1 , wherein a material of the polymer layer is polythiophene, polythiophene's derivative, polyfluorene, polyfluorene's derivative, poly-phenylene vinylene, poly-phenylene vinylene's derivative, polypyrrole, or polypyrrole's derivative.

12. A polymer solar cell, comprising:
an anode electrode, a photoactive layer, an insulating layer, a cathode electrode stacked on each other in that order; the photoactive layer comprising a polymer layer and a plurality of carbon nanotubes dispersed in the polymer layer, and there is only a single material between adjacent two of the plurality of carbon nanotubes in the photoactive layer;
wherein each of the plurality of carbon nanotubes comprises a first portion, a second portion, and a third portion; and the first portion is embedded in the polymer layer, the second portion is embedded in the insulating layer, and the third portion is embedded in the cathode electrode; each of the plurality of carbon nanotubes is in direct contact with the cathode electrode; and the plurality of carbon nanotubes functions as electron acceptors, and electrons migrate from the plurality of carbon nanotubes to the cathode electrode.

13. The polymer solar cell of claim 12 , wherein the plurality of carbon nanotubes are spaced apart from each other and substantially parallel to each other.

14. The polymer solar cell of claim 12 , wherein the polymer layer comprises a first polymer surface being in direct contact with the insulating layer, and an angel of grater than 0 degrees and less than 90 degrees is formed between length directions of the plurality of carbon nanotubes and the first polymer surface.

15. The polymer solar cell of claim 12 , wherein the the polymer layer comprises a first polymer surface and a second polymer surface opposite to the first polymer surface, the second polymer surface is in direct contact with the anode electrode, and the second portion and the third portion are exposed from the first polymer surface.

16. The polymer solar cell of claim 12 , wherein the first portion is in direct contact with the polymer layer.

17. The polymer solar cell of claim 12 , wherein a material of the insulating layer is polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polycarbonate (PC) polyperfluoroethylene propylene (FEP), or polyvinyl fluoride (PVF).

Assignees

• Univ Tsinghua
• Hon Hai Prec Ind Co Ltd

Inventors

• Ning Wen
• Liu Peng
• Jiang Kai-Li
• Fan Shou-Shan

Classifications

• H10K30/352

  the inorganic nanostructures being nanotubes or nanowires, e.g. CdTe nanotubes in P3HT polymer · CPC title

• H10K30/50

  Photovoltaic [PV] devices · CPC title

• H10K30/353

  comprising blocking layers, e.g. exciton blocking layers · CPC title

• H10K85/111 Primary

  comprising aromatic, heteroaromatic, or aryl chains, e.g. polyaniline, polyphenylene or polyphenylene vinylene · CPC title

• Y02E10/549

  Organic PV cells · CPC title