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Nature Energy volume 10, pages 1195–1196 (2025)
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Controlling the morphology of the active layer in organic solar cells (OSCs) is challenging. Now, acenaphthene is shown to induce the two-step crystallization of non-fullerene acceptors to achieve a highly oriented arrangement. The resulting improvement in the charge transport properties enables a binary OSC with 21% efficiency and a 83.2% fill factor.
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Li, G., et al. High-efficiency solution processable polymer photovoltaic cells by self-organization of polymer blends. Nat. Mater. 4, 864–868 (2005). This paper reports a highly crystalline absorber layer morphology achieved through self-aggregation of the polymer blend, enabling high-efficiency OSCs.
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Ayzner, A. L., Tassone, C. J., Tolbert, S. H. & Schwartz, B. J. Reappraising the need for bulk heterojunctions in polymer−fullerene photovoltaics: the role of carrier transport in all-solution-processed P3HT/PCBM bilayer solar cells. J. Phys. Chem. C113, 20050–20060 (2009). This paper is an early report of the layer-by-layer method for depositing the OSC absorber layer.
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Fu, J. et al. Rational molecular and device design enables organic solar cells approaching 20% efficiency. Nat. Commun. 15, 1830 (2024). This paper reports an OSC with an efficiency of ~20% achieved through molecular design of the NFA and a ternary OSC strategy.
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Fu, J. et al. 19.31% binary organic solar cell and low non-radiative recombination enabled by non-monotonic intermediate state transition. Nat. Commun. 14, 1760 (2023). This paper reports an approach for adjusting the self-assembly of photoactive molecules through the use of a halogenated benzene as a crystallization regulator.
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This is a summary of: Fu, J. et al. Two-step crystallization modulated through acenaphthene enabling 21% binary organic solar cells and 83.2% fill factor. Nat. Energy https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01862-1 (2025).
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Increasing the efficiency of binary organic solar cells through a two-step crystallization process. Nat Energy 10, 1195–1196 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01881-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01881-y
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