Provides detailed descriptions of organic, inorganic, and hybrid solar cells and the latest developments in the quest to produce low-cost, long-lasting solar cells What will it take to transform solar energy from an important alternative source to a truly competitive and, perhaps, dominant one? Lower cost and longer life. Organic, Inorganic, and Hybrid Solar Cells: Principles and Practice provides in-depth information on the three types of existing solar cells, giving readers a good foundation for evaluating the technologies with the most potential for competing with energy from fossil fuels. Featuring a Foreword written by Nobel Peace Prize co-winner Dr. Woodrow W. Clark, this timely and comprehensive guide: Focuses on the realization of low-cost and long-life solar cells study and applications Reviews the properties of inorganic materials, primarily semiconductors Explores the electrical and optical properties of organic materials Discusses the interfacing of organic and inorganic materials: compatibility of deposition, the adhesion problem, formation of surface states, and band-level realignment Provides a detailed description of organic-inorganic hybrid solar cells, from the basic principles to practical devices Introduces a sandwiched structure for hybrid solar cells, which combines a far lower production cost than inorganic solar cells while stabilizing and extending the life of organic material far beyond that of organic solar cells Organic, Inorganic, and Hybrid Solar Cells: Principles and Practice is a first-rate professional reference for electrical engineers and important supplemental reading for graduate students in related areas of study.

Comprehensive Guide on Organic and Inorganic Solar Cells: Fundamental Concepts to Fabrication Methods is a one-stop, authoritative resource on all types of inorganic, organic and hybrid solar cells, including their theoretical background and the practical knowledge required for fabrication. With chapters rigorously dedicated to a particular type of solar cell, each subchapter takes a detailed look at synthesis recipes, deposition techniques, materials properties and their influence on solar cell performance, including advanced characterization methods with materials selection and experimental techniques. By addressing the evolution of solar cell technologies, second generation thin-film photovoltaics, organic solar cells, and finally, the latest hybrid organic-inorganic approaches, this book benefits students and researchers in solar cell technology to understand the similarities, differences, benefits and challenges of each device. Introduces the basic concepts of different photovoltaic cells to audiences from a wide variety of academic backgrounds Consists of working principles of a particular category of solar technology followed by dissection of every component within the architecture Crucial experimental procedures for the fabrication of solar cell devices are introduced, aiding picture practical application of the technology

Organic-inorganic hybrid solar cells such as dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) have reached photovoltaic conversion efficiency of 12.3%.1 Their immediate successor, perovskite solar cells (PSCs), have reached an unprecedented efficiency of 17.9% in 2014, from 3.81% in 2009 2, making them competitive with thin-film silicon based PV technology. However, the most significant concern for the organic-inorganic solar cells is their long-term instability, especially at high temperature, above ca. 60 °C, and in contact with moisture present in the air. Their application will be limited unless they have credited stability performance. Improving the stability of organic-inorganic solar cells and understanding their degradation mechanisms is essential for their commercialization and wide-spread use. In the thesis, the stability and degradation mechanisms of two types of organic-inorganic solar cells: flexible dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) built on ITO/PEN substrates and perovskite solar cells (PSCs) were investigated.The first chapter was a general introduction to the organic-inorganic hybrid solar cells, especially dye-sensitized solar cells and perovskite solar cells, such as the development history, structure and operating principles of the cells and the research objectives of the studies.In Chapter 2, literatures regarding the stability of DSSCs and PSCs were thoroughly reviewed and findings of their degradation mechanisms were summarized, which also pointed out research gaps and critical stability issues that still need to be understood and improved.In Chapter 3, all the experimental details are specified, including the chemicals, materials, device fabrication and characterization techniques, stability testing conditions and data analysis. In Chapter 4, the characteristics of flexible DSSCs with the photoanode produced using cold isostatic pressing technique were studied using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS). The data obtained were analyzed using a transmission line model of DSSCs, which pointed out that the pressing technique may improve short term performance of the devices, but the long-term performance of devices made on plastic substrates deteriorated with aging as a result of reduced TiO2 particle-particle and/or particle-conductive substrate contacts.The results obtained from Chapter 4 gave rise to the inspiration of the studies in Chapter 5, where the mechanical and electrochemical stability of compressed photoanodes (TiO2/ITO/PEN) and counter electrodes (Pt/ITO/PEN) in three different ionic liquid (IL) based electrolyte environment were studied using mechanical bending machine, cyclic voltammetry (CV), EIS, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. The results showed that the presence of Li+ ions and H2O molecules in the electrolyte were detrimental to the stability of devices. Li+ ions were responsible to the detachment of Pt particles from the Pt/ITO/PEN electrode and the increase in the recombination resistance of compressed TiO2 films, explaining the gradual increase of Voc with aging observed in chapter 4. The presence of water molecules in the electrolyte can cause degradation of the electrolyte species, forming iodate compounds, and also serious degradation of the ITO substrate. The most stable outcome could be obtained with Li+ ions and H20 free electrolyte. Efficient and stable flexible DSSCs that take advantage of the negligible vapor pressure of IL electrolytes, with minimal sacrifice of photovoltaic conversion efficiency, were successfully produced and demonstrated in Chapter 6 using an ALD deposited blocking layer of 12 nm and an around 1 μm thick TiO2 film, sensitized with hydrophobic dye (MK-2).Following the success of making more stable DSSCs, a much improved stability of the perovskite solar cells was demonstrated in Chapter 7 by using a sophisticated sealing method that effectively reduced the attack of water from the environment. The cells showed outstanding stability at 50% humidity and one sun illumination over 16 temperature cycling tests (350 hours) at cell temperatures of 10 to 100 °C, followed by 500 hours constant cell temperature testing at 85 °C. Also, the degradation mechanisms were revealed using post-mortem analysis of these cells using XRD and cross-sectional SEM analysis.We drew some final conclusions in Chapter 8 together with our outlooks in the future research and development of more stable DSSCs and PSCs.

Organic solar cells have emerged as new promising photovoltaic devices due to their potential applications in large area, printable and flexible solar panels. Organic Solar Cells: Materials and Device Physics offers an updated review on the topics covering the synthesis, properties and applications of new materials for various critical roles in devices from electrodes, interface and carrier transport materials, to the active layer composed of donors and acceptors. Addressing the important device physics issues of carrier and exciton dynamics and interface stability and novel light trapping structures, the potential for hybrid organic solar cells to provide high efficiency solar cells is examined and discussed in detail. Specific chapters covers key areas including: Latest research and designs for highly effective polymer donors/acceptors and interface materials Synthesis and application of highly transparent and conductive graphene Exciton and charge dynamics for in-depth understanding of the mechanism underlying organic solar cells. New potentials and emerging functionalities of plasmonic effects in OSCs Interface Degradation Mechanisms in organic photovoltaics improving the entire device lifetime Device architecture and operation mechanism of organic/ inorganic hybrid solar cells for next generation of high performance photovoltaics This reference can be practically and theoretically applied by senior undergraduates, postgraduates, engineers, scientists, researchers, and project managers with some fundamental knowledge in organic and inorganic semiconductor materials or devices.