Electronic Configuration Tuning of Centrally Extended Non-Fullerene Acceptors Enabling Organic Solar Cells with Efficiency Approaching 19?%

Abstract

In the molecular optimizations of non-fullerene acceptors (NFAs), extending the central core can tune the energy levels, reduce nonradiative energy loss, enhance the intramolecular (donor-acceptor and acceptor-acceptor) packing, facilitate the charge transport, and improve device performance. In this study, a new strategy was employed to synthesize acceptors featuring conjugation-extended electron-deficient cores. Among these, the acceptor CH-BBQ, embedded with benzobisthiadiazole, exhibited an optimal fibrillar network morphology, enhanced crystallinity, and improved charge generation/transport in blend films, leading to a power conversion efficiency of 18.94 % for CH-BBQ-based ternary organic solar cells (OSCs; 18.19 % for binary OSCs) owing to its delicate structure design and electronic configuration tuning. Both experimental and theoretical approaches were used to systematically investigate the influence of the central electron-deficient core on the properties of the acceptor and device performance. The electron-deficient core modulation paves a new pathway in the molecular engineering of NFAs, propelling relevant research forward. A series of acceptors featuring conjugation-extended electron-deficient cores were synthesized via a newly developed strategy for organic solar cells, and power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of up to & AP;19 % were achieved. The properties of new acceptors were systematically investigated and elucidated experimentally and computationally.image