Block Copolymers for Organic Optoelectronics

While polymers hold significant potential as low cost, mechanically flexible, lightweight large area photovoltaics and light emitting devices (OLEDs), their performance relies crucially on understanding and controlling the morphology on the nanometer scale. The ca. 10 nm length scale of exciton diff...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Macromolecules 2009-12, Vol.42 (23), p.9205-9216
Main Authors: Segalman, Rachel A, McCulloch, Bryan, Kirmayer, Saar, Urban, Jeffrey J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Application fields
Applied sciences
Electronics
Energy
Exact sciences and technology
Natural energy
Optoelectronic devices
Photovoltaic conversion
Polymer industry, paints, wood
Semiconductor electronics. Microelectronics. Optoelectronics. Solid state devices
Solar cells. Photoelectrochemical cells
Solar energy
Technology of polymers
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Summary:While polymers hold significant potential as low cost, mechanically flexible, lightweight large area photovoltaics and light emitting devices (OLEDs), their performance relies crucially on understanding and controlling the morphology on the nanometer scale. The ca. 10 nm length scale of exciton diffusion sets the patterning length scale necessary to affect charge separation and overall efficiency in photovoltaics. Moreover, the imbalance of electron and hole mobilities in most organic materials necessitates the use of multiple components in many device architectures. These requirements for 10 nm length scale patterning in large area, solution processed devices suggest that block copolymer strategies previously employed for more classical, insulating polymer systems may be very useful in organic electronics. This Perspective seeks to describe both the synthesis and self-assembly of block copolymers for organic optoelectronics. Device characterization of these inherently complex active layers remains a significant challenge and is also discussed.
ISSN:0024-9297
1520-5835
DOI:10.1021/ma901350w