Sputtered Zn(O,S)/In2O3:H window layers for enhanced blue response of chalcopyrite solar cells

A combination of undoped ZnO and ZnO:Al is the most commonly used window layer stack for chalcopyrite solar cells. The high carrier density and thickness required to achieve a sufficiently low sheet resistance lead to optical absorption and cause losses in photocurrent, in particular in monolithically interconnected modules. Additionally, the band gap of the CdS buffer layer and of un‐doped ZnO limit the blue response. These losses could be avoided by using a transparent conductive oxide with high carrier mobility and wider band gap in combination with a buffer layer which also has a wide band gap. We propose a stack of Zn(O,S) and In₂O₃:H and report on our first results concerning its implementation. This stack is Cd‐free, highly transparent over a wide range, and can be deposited completely by sputtering which is an industrially proven dry process. (© 2015 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH &Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Cyanide sensing via metal ion removal from a fluorogenic BODIPY complex

We report a highly selective and sensitive reversible cyanide sensor operating in the ‘turn-off-on’ mode via decomplexation of Cu(II) ions from a brightly fluorescent boradiazaindacene derivative. The sensor is reversible as the emission signal originates from the dynamic equilibration of dipicolylamine-Cu(II) and tetracyanocuprate complex ions.     

He-broadening and shifting coefficients of HCl lines in the (1←0) and (2←0) infrared transitions

ABSTRACT

We report experimental results on the broadening and shifting coefficients in a large interval of J quantum numbers in the fundamental and first overtone vibration–rotation bands of the HCl molecule in mixtures with helium. Many of the values, especially for the overtone transition, are novel. The uncertainties for the isotope-averaged broadening coefficients amount to 2% on average for the fundamental and 1.5% for the overtone bands. Shifts have a typical uncertainty of 3%.     

Structure and bonding of new boron and carbon superpolyhedra

Structural Chemistry - Using the DFT methods, we computationally predict the stability of cage compounds E4nRn (E = B, C; R = H, F; n = 4, 8, 12, 24) based on Platonic bodies and...     

Stabilization of non-standard conformations of the annulene rings in cyclobutadiene-framed [<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>]annulenes (<Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis> = 8, 10, 12, 14) and their beryllium sandwich-like complexes: a quantum chemical study

The structures of a series of polycyclic derivatives of [n]annulenes (n = 8, 10, 12, 14) functionalized with peripheral cyclobutadiene rings were studied using the DFT B3LYP/6-311+G(3df,2p) and M062X/6-311+G(3df,2p) methods. The compounds with n = 8 and 10 have the planar and those with n = 12, 14 saddle-shaped conformations of the central rings. Stabilization of non-standard planar forms of the hydrocarbons with central 12- and 14-membered conjugated rings may be achieved through π-complexation of C=C bonds of the cyclobutadiene fragments with beryllium atoms to afford the sandwich-like complexes with circular arrangement of beryllium centers around the perimeter of a ligand.     

Prospects of Graphene as a Potential Carrier‐Transport Material in Third‐Generation Solar Cells

Third‐generation solar cells are understood to be the pathway to overcoming the issues and drawbacks of the existing solar cell technologies. Since the introduction of graphene in solar cells, it has been providing attractive properties for the next generation of solar cells. Currently, there are more theoretical predictions rather than practical recognitions in third‐generation solar cells. Some of the potential of graphene has been explored in organic photovoltaics (OPVs) and dye‐sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), but it has yet to be fully comprehended in the recent third‐generation inorganic–organic hybrid perovskite solar cells. In this review, the diverse role of graphene in third‐generation OPVs and DSSCs will be deliberated to provide an insight on the prospects and challenges of graphene in inorganic–organic hybrid perovskite solar cells.     

Planar and pyramidal tetracoordinate carbon in organoboron compounds

Using previously proposed C(BH)2(CH)2 (16, 17) and C(CH)2B2 (22) systems with a central planar tetracoordinate carbon (ptC) atom linking two three-membered rings as building blocks, a series of stable structures containing two and three ptC centers within a molecule have been designed and computationally studied with the DFT (B3LYP/6-311+G) method. Inclusion of a carbon atom ligated with pi-accepting and sigma-donating boron centers into at least one aromatic ring is critical for stabilization of a planar structure. A square pyramidal configuration at tetracoordinate carbon may be achieved in appropriately strained molecules such as [3.3.3.3]tetraborafenestrane 45 and others by surrounding the carbon with boron-centered ligands.