Solvent and electric field dependence of the photocurrent generation in donor：acceptor blend system

This paper reports that the blend films of poly (2-methoxy-5-(2'-ethyl-hexyloxy)-p-phenylene vinylene) (MEH-PPV) and N,N'-bis(1-ethylpropyl)-3,4: 9,10-perylene bis (tetracarboxyl diimide) (EP-PDI) with the weight ratio of 1:2.5 have been prepared by spin-coating from chloroform (CF) and chlorobenzene (CB) solutions respectively. The absorption spectra and the morphology of the blend films show that large crystal-like EP-PDI aggregates are formed in film prepared from CB solution, which corresponds to a new absorption shoulder near 590nm, while there is no shoulder around 590\,nm in the UV--Vis absorption spectra of the blend film from CF solution. The electric-field dependence spectra of the photocurrent generation quantum yield of the film from CB solution shows that at weak electric field the EP-PDI aggregates act as more efficient sensitizers, but at strong electric field the quantum yields become almost invariable over the entire spectral range no matter what the state of EP-PDI, monomer or aggregate. At strong electric field, the photocurrent generation yields of both films from CF and CB solution saturate and their yield spectra become spectrally similar, mentioning that at strong electric field the photoexcitons dissociate efficiently and the free charges are collected by the electrodes almost completely.