New D-π-A-conjugated organic sensitizers based on 4H-pyran-4-ylidene donors for highly efficient dye-sensitized solar cells

We have synthesized a series of four new promising D-π-A conjugated organic sensitizers with a proaromatic 4H-pyran-4-ylidene as a donor, a thiophene ring in the bridge, and 2-cyanoacrilic acid as acceptor. Comparison between different donor substituents and the modification of the thiophene ring resulted in molar extinction coefficients as high as 36399 M(-1) cm(-1) at 551 nm. The photovoltaic properties of the DSSCs demonstrate power conversion efficiencies as high as 5.4%.     

Novel D-π-A type II organic sensitizers for dye sensitized solar cells

Four organic donor-π-conjugated-acceptor (D-π-A) type II dyes with different thiophene linkers are reported for dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). For the first time, a donor (triphenylamine) was introduced in type II sensitizers, and 2-hydroxybenzonitrile as acceptor/anchoring moiety was covalently linked TiO₂ particles. The dye LS203 in this series gives the best solar energy conversion efficiency of 3.4%, with J_sc = 7.4 mA cm⁻², V_oc = 0.67 V, FF = 0.69, the maximum IPCE value reaches 66.9%.     

D-π-A dye system containing cyano-benzoic acid as anchoring group for dye-sensitized solar cells

A D-π-A dye (KM-1) incorporating cyano-benzoic acid as a new acceptor/anchoring group has been synthesized for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) with a high molar extinction coefficient of 66,700 M(-1) cm(-1) at 437 nm. Theoretical calculations show that the hydrogen bond between -CN and surface hydroxyl leads to the most stable configuration on the surface of TiO(2). In addition, the adsorption of the dye on TiO(2) follows a Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) isotherm. Multilayer adsorption of KM-1 on TiO(2) seems to take place particularly at higher dye concentrations. DSC device using KM-1 reached a maximum incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency (IPCE) of 84%, with a solar to electric power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 3.3% at AM1.5 G illumination (100 mW cm(-2)). This new type of anchoring group paves a way to design new dyes that combine good visible light harvesting with strong binding to the metal oxide surface.     

Novel D-π-A structured Zn(ii)-porphyrin dyes containing a bis(3,3-dimethylfluorenyl)amine moiety for dye-sensitised solar cells

A high solar-to-electricity conversion efficiency of 7.22% was achieved with a short circuit current (J(sc)) of 15.30 mA cm(-2), an open circuit voltage (V(oc)) of 669 mV and a fill factor (FF) of 0.71 for the 2Flu-ZnP-CN-COOH dye with a multi-functional co-adsorbent, under 100 mW cm(-2) AM 1.5 G simulated light.     

Design and synthesis of D-π-A fluorescent dyes based on nicotinonitrile and azobenzene derivatives

Study the synthesis and fluorescent properties of a new series of D-π-A fluorescent dyes based on nicotinonitrile and azobenzene is the main objective for this work. Reduction with Zn/HCl, diazotization with HCl/NaNO₂, and coupling using catalytic NaOH or AcONa are simple applied methods. Where, nicotinonitrile 3 was synthesized via reduction of nitro derivative 1 followed by diazotization with HCl/NaNO₂ in acetic acid. The formed benzene diazonium chloride was coupled with several activated phenols, aniline, and α-CH acids to yield the respective azo dyes 4-11 in moderate to good yield. Dyes 11a-d subjected to intermolecular cyclization with hydrazine hydrate resulted in pyrazole dyes 12-15 in moderate yield. Dyes containing pyrazole moiety or electron-withdrawing groups at the sixth position of pyridine nucleus exhibit stronger blue-green emission (λ_fl.max = 503, 507, 500, 501, 502, 493, and 514 nm) than that of the rest of compounds.     

A novel D-A-π-A organic sensitizer containing a diketopyrrolopyrrole unit with a branched alkyl chain for highly efficient and stable dye-sensitized solar cells

A novel D-A-π-A type organic dye (YCD01) incorporating a diketopyrrolopyrrole unit with a branched alkyl chain was synthesized for dye-sensitized solar cells. YCD01 showed a high conversion efficiency of 7.43% (AM 1.5, 100 mW cm(-2)) with a J(sc) of 13.40 mA cm(-2), a V(oc) of 0.76 V, a FF of 0.73 and an excellent stability.     

Structure-property relationships of organic dyes with D-π-A structure in dye-sensitized solar cells

Organic dyes with a D-π-A structure have drawn increasing attention as sensitizers in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), due to their rich photophysical properties, easy molecular tailoring, and low-cost production. This review mainly focuses on the relationship between dye structure and photovoltaic properties for organic dyes containing cyanoacrylic acid as both an anchor and an acceptor. This review also introduces different donors and π-conjugation units as building blocks for sensitizer synthesis.     

Structure-dependent reversible mechanochromism of D-π-A triphenylamine derivatives

Three simple non-planar D-π-A TPA-based isomers (TPA-o, TPA-m, and TPA-p) were designed and synthesized via Suzuki reaction with higher yields. It was found that all of the three compounds had intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) properties resulting from electron donation from triphenylamine to the formyl moiety. Interestingly, TPA-based derivatives solids exhibited not only reversible mechanochromic behaviors, but structure-dependent emission properties. The solid emission studies illustrated that their fluorescence color could change reversibly between bright blue (455?nm), blue (445?nm), cyan (479?nm), and bright blue-green (497?nm), bright blue (460?nm), yellowish-green (511?nm) through grinding and dichloromethane (DCM) fuming treatment, giving the large spectral red-shifts of 42, 15, and 32?nm, respectively. The MFC activities of the three compounds are increased with the sequence of TPA-o (42?nm)?>?TPA-p (32?nm)?>?TPA-m (15?nm). The single crystal structure, powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD) and DSC studies indicated that the reversible phase change from crystalline to amorphous was responsible for MFC properties. This work demonstrated the feasibility of tuning the solid-state optical properties of fluorescent organic compounds by combining the simple alteration of chemical structure and the physical change of aggregate morphology under external stimuli. And these results will be of great help in understanding structure-property relationships of MFC mechanisms and designing new more MFC materials.     

Effects of structure and electronic properties of D-π-A organic dyes on photovoltaic performance of dye-sensitized solar cells

Herein,we examine the performance of dye-sensitized solar cells containing five D-π-A organic dyes designed by systematic modification of π-bridge size and geometric structure.Each dye has a simple push-pull structure with a triarylamino group as an electron donor,bithiophene-4,4-dimethyl-4 H-cyclopenta 1,2-b:5,4-b’]dithiophene(M11),4,4-dimethyl-4 H-cyclopenta[1,2-b:5,4-b’]dithiophenethiophene(M12),thiophene-4,4-dimethyl-4 H-cyclopenta[1,2-b:5,4-b’]dithiophene(M13),4,4-dimethyl-4 H-cyclopenta[1,2-b:5,4-b’]dithiophene-benzene(M14),and 4,4-dimethyl-4 H-cyclopenta[1,2-b:5,4-b’]dithiophene(M15)units asπ-bridges,and cyanoacrylic acid as an electron acceptor/anchor.The extension of theπ-bridge linkage favors wide-range absorption but,because of the concomitant molecular volume increase,hinders the efficient adsorption of dyes on the TiO₂ film surface.Hence,higher loadings are achieved for smaller dye molecules,resulting in(i)a shift of the TiO₂ conduction band edge to more negative values,(ii)a greater photocurrent,and(iii)suppressed charge recombination between the photoanode and the redox couple in the electrolyte.Consequently,under one-sun equivalent illumination(AM 1.5 G,100 mW/cm²),the highest photovoltage,photocurrent,and conversion efficiency(η=7.19%)are observed for M15,which has the smallest molecular volume among M series dyes.     

Theoretical investigation of novel carbazole-fluorene based D-π-A conjugated organic dyes as dye-sensitizer in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs)

The ground state structure and frontier molecular orbital of newly synthesized carbazole-fluorene based D-π-A organic dyes, CFP1A, CFP2A, CFP1CA, and CFP2CA, were theoretically investigated using density functional theory (DFT) at B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) level. These dye molecules have been constructed based on carbazole-fluorene as the electron-donating moiety while introducing benzene units as π-spacer connected to different anchor groups, such as acrylic acid and cyanoacrylic acid, as acceptors. The electronic vertical excitation energies and absorption wavelength were carried out using time-dependent DFT (TD-DFT). Furthermore, the adsorptions of phenylacrylic acid and phenylcyanoacrylic acid on the TiO(2) anatase (101) surface were carried out by means of quantum-chemical periodic calculations employing periodic PBE functional with DNP basis set. The results promise that anchor dyes with strong withdrawing CN group have easier injected electron to the conduction band of semiconductor implying that CFP1CA and CFP2CA show better performance among four dyes. Additionally, the intramolecular charge transfers (ICT) from electron donor group to anchoring group of CFP1CA and CFP2CA have shown better performance. The calculated results provide the efficiency trend of our new dyes as CFP1CA ≈ CFP2CA > CFP1A ≈ CFP2A which are excellently agree with experimental observation.     

Molecular engineering and cosensitization for developing efficient solar cells based on porphyrin dyes with an extended π framework

<正>Dye-sensitized solar cells(DSSCs)have a promising future because of their low production cost,easy fabrication and relatively high solar energy conversion efficiency.In the past two decades,increasing interests have been focused on the improvement of cell efficiencies.Thus,many efficient sensitizers with donor-π-acceptor frameworks have been successfully developed.In this respect,porphyrins have     

Conjugated polymers based on new thienylene – PPV derivatives for solar cell applications

Two π-conjugated monomers based on bis-(1-cyano-2-thienyl-vinylene)phenylene derivatives were synthesized by Knoevenagel condensation. Both monomers are found to form electroactive polymers upon electrochemical oxidation. The withdrawing effect due to the cyano-substituent allows for the reversible n-doping of the polymer. Thus, the band gap E_g was measured using electrochemical techniques and compared with that obtained by UV–VIS–NIR spectroscopy. Based on the measured band gap of 1.87 and 1.58 eV, these polymers appear to be interesting candidates for solar-cell applications.     

Theoretical investigation of nonlinear optical behavior for rod and T-Shaped phenothiazine based D-π-A organic compounds and their derivatives

The exploration of novel materials with excellent nonlinear optical (NLO) features is an area of frontline investigation for scientific community from technological point of view. This study reports the novel phenothiazine-based rod-shaped and T-shaped NLO molecules which are quantum chemically designed from synthesized compounds: rod-shaped (CFA and CBA) and T-shaped (CTA, CCA and CPA). Structural tailoring was performed on D-π-π-A centered CPA chromophore and the effect of various π-spacers, as well as solvents on NLO response properties is investigated. Density functional theory (DFT) along with time dependent DFT (TDDFT) calculations have been executed at B3LYP/6-311G(d,p) functional to examine entire analysis. Results showed a smaller energy gap in structurally modified compounds as compared to reference CPA. Global reactivity parameters analysis revealed smaller hardness and larger softness values in T-shaped compounds. UV–Vis analysis of investigated molecules displayed a red shift in absorption maximum value as compared to CPA. Natural bond orbital (NBO) and frontier molecular orbital (FMO) analysis revealed the stability and intra-molecular electron transferring (ICT) process in investigated molecules. ICT showed the effective charge shift from donor to acceptor via π-spacers. Overall, promising NLO response exists in gas phase and different solvents (acetonitrile, ethyl alcohol and water). Interestingly, proposed molecule CPP presented a maximum value of linear polarizability < α > as 1518.23 a.u and first hyperpolarizability (β_tot) as 755322.39 a.u in acetonitrile solvent. In short, entitled chromophores exhibited excellent NLO properties due to their lower charge transport resistance. This NLO study may open a new topic for researchers to discover novel NLO for hi-tech submissions of modern era.     

Two D-π-A type fluorescent probes based on isolongifolanone for sensing acidic pH with large Stokes shifts

Two novel isolongifolanone derivatives (2–3) with D-π-A configuration, which had a N,N-dimethylaniline unit attached to pyrazole and pyrimidine cores, were synthesized and characterized by IR, NMR and HRMS. As the protonation of the nitrogen atoms, the probes 2–3 displayed the significant pH-dependent spectral properties. The probe 2 exhibited a remarkable ratiometric fluorescence emission (I₄₄₅/I₃₇₃) characteristic with pK_a 2.59 and the linear response over the extremely acidic range of 1.5–4.0. The probe 3 showed an obvious emission quenching at 434?nm (λ_ex?=?300?nm) with a pK_a of 3.69 and responded linearly to monitor the pH fluctuations with the weakly acidic range of 3.5–7.0, while exhibited a linear emission enhancement at 519?nm (λ_ex?=?425?nm) over the extremely acidic range of 1.0–3.5. These pH probes also displayed favorable features including large Stokes shift under acidic conditions, high selectivity, rapid response, excellent photostability and good reversibility for sensing acidic pH which were further applied to response to acidic solid and gas phase using their solid-state samples, causing dramatic fluorescence color changes. In addition, the logic gates for probe 2 were constructed to develop its potential for practical applications.     

The design,synthesis, and characterization of D-π-A-π-A type organic dyes as sensitizers for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs)

New D-π-A-π-A type organic dyes were synthesized and characterized as sensitizers for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). These dyes showed wide absorption spectra (300–625 nm) and high molar extinction coefficients (ε_467 nm = 60,911 M⁻¹ cm⁻¹). As dye sensitizers in DSSC, the D-π-A-π-A dye having a cyanoacrylic acid as an acceptor gave the best cell performance with a short-circuit photocurrent density (J_sc) of 7.14 mA/cm², an open-circuit voltage (V_oc) of 0.62 V, and a fill factor (FF) of 0.72, corresponding to an overall conversion efficiency η of 3.19%.     

Synthesis and photophysical properties of donor–acceptor system based bipyridylporphyrins for dye-sensitized solar cells

Bipyridylporphyrin derivatives possessing a porphyrin moiety as the electron donor and bipyridyl moiety as the electron–acceptor were designed and synthesized for dye-sensitized solar cells(DSSCs). The photophysical and electrochemical properties were investigated by absorption spectrometry and cyclic voltammetry. Density functional theory(DFT) was employed to study electron distribution. From the photovoltaic performance measurements, a maximum conversion efficiency(η) of 0.38% was achieved based on the bipyridylporphyrin ruthenium dye A7(J_(SC)= 1.33 mA/cm~2, V_(OC)= 0.45 V, FF = 0.64) under 1.5 irradiation(100 mW/cm~2).     

Incorporation ofγ-aminobutyric acid and cesium cations to formamidinium lead halide perovskites for highly efficient solar cells

The stability issue has become one of the main challenges for the commercialization of perovskite solar cells(PSCs).Formamidinium(FA)-based perovskites have shown great promise owing to their improved thermal and moisture stability.However,these perovskites are suffering from phase transition and separation.Here,a method of incorporating of γ-aminobutyric acid(GABA) and cesium cations into FAPbl₃ is developed to improve the phase stability.It is demonstrated that the crystallinity of α-FAPbl₃ phase is greatly improved and the phase transition temperature is significantly dropped.The resultant solar cell therefore obtains a champion power conversion efficiency(PCE) of 23.71%,which is one of the highest efficiencies for methylammonium-free PSCs.Furthermore,it shows an impressively enhanced stability under illumination,exhibiting the great potential of FA-based perovskites for efficient and stable solar cells.     

Synthesis and properties of a blue bipolar indenofluorene emitter based on a D-π-A design

Through a rational design, a novel Donor-Acceptor π-conjugated (D-π-A) blue fluorescent indenofluorene dye, DA-DSF-IF, has been synthesized for application in single-layer Small Molecule Organic Light Emitting Diodes (SMOLEDs). This new blue emitter possesses bipolar properties as well as good morphological and emission color stabilities and has been successfully used in a blue emitting single-layer SMOLED, with performances impressively magnified compared to a nonbipolar indenofluorene emitter.     

Panchromatic ruthenium sensitizer based on electron-rich heteroarylvinylene π-conjugated quaterpyridine for dye-sensitized solar cells

The first example of a heteroarylvinylene π-conjugated quaterpyridine Ru(II) sensitizer (N1044) was synthesized and used in dye-sensitized solar cells; the dye has an effective panchromatic absorption band, covering the entire visible spectrum up to the NIR region, and superior electrochemical characteristics (HOMO/LUMO and bandgap energies) with respect to previous representative Ru(II) bi- and quaterpyridine sensitizers. A record IPCE curve ranging from 360 to 920 nm has been measured with a maximum of 65% at 646 nm and still 33% efficiency at 800 nm; this leads to substantially increased photocurrent (19.2 mA cm(-2)) when compared to the prototype N719 Ru(II) sensitizer.     

D-A-π-A organic sensitizers containing a benzothiazole moiety as an additional acceptor for use in solar cells

Three novel triphenylamine-based D-A-π-A-featured dyes (Z1-Z3) have been designed, synthesized and characterized for use in dye-sensitized solar cells. Benzothiazole was incorporated as an additional acceptor, which greatly enhanced the molar extinction coefficient of the dyes. Various conjugated linkers, such as benzene, furan and thiophene, were also introduced to configure the novel D-A-π-A framework in order to prolong electron flow and active transportation. Among all dyes, Z2 containing a thiophene linker exhibited the maximum overall conversion efficiency (η) of 4.16% (Jsc = 9.27 mA cm-2 , Voc = 642 mV, FF = 0.70) under standard global AM 1.5 G solar condition.