Polymers in Solar Cells

Joshua

Hufford
Bryan Orellana
Yunchao Li
McKay Barnett
Sameh Mehrez

http://static.technorati.com/10/04/14/11757/solar-panels.jpg

Polymer Solar Cells

First Generation

Single crystal silicon

wafers

Second Generation

Polycrystalline silicon

Amorphous silicon

Single Crystal Silicon Wafer

http://www.goldmine-elec-products.com/images/G2243B.jpg

Third Generation

Nanocrystal solar cells

Polymer solar cells

Fourth Generation

Hybrid - inorganic crystals

within a polymer matrix

Polycrystalline Silicon
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_cell

State-of-the-Art!
Use

of polymers (i.e. PPV Polyphenylene

Vinylenes) with nanoparticles mixed
together to make a single multispectrum
layer

Inorganic

particles:

hybrids that are used as the nano

CdSe

Titania

This

(Titanium oxide)

new form creates a more effective

transport for charges

State-of-the-Art!
Significant

advances in hybrid solar cells have followed the

development of elongated nanocrystal rodes and branched
nano crystals
Increase

surface area
Decreases resistance

Incorporation

of larger nanostructures into polymers require

optimization of blend morphology using solvent mixtures
Mayer, A.
This

makes it easy to potentially make large rolls of thin, flexible

polymer solar cells

Where can you find Solar Cells?

Solar cells have many market

opportunities

Solar cells in space:

sustainable, reliable, and an economical source

of power

The international space station; four sets of

arrays, each one has 250,000 solar cells that
can power a small neighborhood.

Solar power plants in the Mojave

Desert

9 plants provides more power than what Saudi

Arabia produces from oil every day
Cleaner, and more sustainable compared to oil.

Image taken from www.space.com

Where can you find Solar Cells?

The first solar powered airplane

Flew

for 26 continuous hours.

It was powered by 12,000 solar cells on its
carbon fiber wings.
Powered

solar vehicles
Residential roof solar panels.

Roadmap: Where are polymer solar

cells going?
Converting

some of the heat for an overall

solar cell composite

More

efficient and cheaper

Based

on polymer solar cell and

heterojunction technology

Roadmap: Where are polymer solar

cells going?
Future

advances will rely on new

nanocrystals, such as titania, to replace
fullerene derivatives.

Potential

to enhance light absorption and

further improve charge transport.

Increase efficiency while getting away from all

organic solar cell polymers.

Conclusion
New

innovations in polymeric materials and other

nanoparticles are allowing for cheaper solar cells

Continued

cells

Cost

research will lead to more efficient

effective, sustainable, ease of production,

long lasting are key traits that make this
technology increasingly plausible as a green
replacement from present energy resources.

References:

https://scifinder.cas.org/scifinder/view/scifinder/sci
finderExplore.jsf

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solar_cell

Mayer, A., S. Scully, B. Hardin, M. Rowell, and M.

Mcgehee. "Polymer-based Solar Cells." Materials
Today 10.11 (2007): 28-33. Print.