Application of Poly(2,3-dihydrothieno-1,4-dioxin) (PEDOT) In Solar Cells

PEDOT, CAS number: 126213-51-2, and is a new type of organic conductive material. PEDOT is a polythiophene derivative and has been a research hotspot in the field of polymer materials. It has the characteristics of high electrical conductivity, high transparency of the film, excellent mechanical strength and environmental stability. It is used in the fields of supercapacitors and solar photovoltaic cells. With a wide range of applications, this article will introduce the application of PEDOT in solar cells.

According to published literature, many studies have changed the performance of PEDOT through dopants, making it have broad application prospects in flexible and transparent solar cells.

Peng Huang et al ^[1] used levodopa (DOPA) and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as co-dopants to doped PEDOT: PSS films to improve the battery efficiency of p-i-n type perovskite batteries. 

The results show that the PEDOT: PSS  film co-doped with DOPA and DMSO can significantly improve the conductivity of the hole transport layer. After doping with 0.5% co-dopant, the efficiency of the battery is 13.35% when it is undoped. Increased to 17.54%. It can be seen that PEDOT doped with PSS is an efficient hole transport layer, which can realize the preparation of high-performance perovskite solar cells.

Yujuan Xiao et al. ^[2] used π-conjugated polyelectrolytes containing sulfonic acid groups as templates to prepare stable PEDOT / polyelectrolyte composite materials by chemical oxidation-reduction method and applied them to the hole transport layer of polymer solar cells . The results show that with the PEDOT: polyelectrolyte composite material as the hole transport layer, a transmittance of up to 95% can be obtained, and it still has an initial cell efficiency of 69% after being left at room temperature for 4.5 days.

Yi Xu et al. ^[3]printed the PEDOT: PSS mixture on the surface of the conductive glass substrate by screen printing to form a thin film  first ly, then treated the film surface with dilute sulfuric acid and methanol solution, and finally assembled it as a counter electrode with dye-sensitized solar Battery (DSSC). The study found that the conductivity of the PEDOT: PSS thin film treated with dilute sulfuric acid and methanol increased by 3 times, and the photoelectric conversion efficiency of the assembled DSSC also increased by 29.69%.

n summary, PEDOT is an important hole transport layer material in solar cells, which is conducive to improving the photoelectric conversion efficiency of solar cells. Solar cells, polymer solar cells, and dye-sensitized solar cells play an important role.

Related links: PEDOT

references:

[1] Huang Peng, et al. Journal of Physical Chemistry, 2018, 34 (11): 1 264–1 271.

[2] Xiao Yujuan, et al. Journal of Polymer Science, 2018 (2): 257–265.

[3] Xu Yi, et al. Journal of Polymer Science, 2019, 50 (1): 36–43.