Enhanced photovoltaic performance in nanoimprinted pentacene-PbS nanocrystal hybrid device

Pentacene and PbS nanocrystal bilayer photovoltaic devices are fabricated after the pentacene layer is subjected to nanoimprinting using a laser textured silicon stamp. Increased short circuit current densities are observed for the imprinted devices, which are attributed to increased charge mobility in the pentacene film caused by the decrease in the intermolecular distances during nanoimprinting. This work is consistent with previous reports where hydrostatic pressure induced mobility increases have been observed in polyacenes under gigapascal pressure regimes. It is believed that the pentacene film undergoes localized high pressures during nanoimprinting, giving rise to the increased hole mobilities. (c) 2008 American Institute of Physics.</p

Organic-Inorganic solar cells: Recent developments and outlook

Solution-processed photovoltaic devices are an attractive alternative to costly inorganic semiconductor-based conventional photovoltaics. Solution-processable organic photovoltaic systems are affected by low carrier mobility, lifetime issues under ambient conditions, and limited optical absorption due to the high bandgaps of organic materials. Nanostructured inorganic materials promise to alleviate some of these drawbacks, by enabling the systems to perform better in a commercial perspective. This paper examines four key areas of hybrid organic-inorganic photovoltaic systems. These are metal oxide-organic, carbon nanotube-organic, semiconductor nanowire-organic, and semiconductor nanocrystal-organic systems, which are showing growing importance and potential in the literature. Recent advances in terms of device performance for these respective topics are reviewed, along with an outlook for each system