Effect of degradation on electronic properties of polymer solar cells

We present here the effect of degradation on electronic properties of polymer solar cells. Investigations were performed on two types of solar cells based on the bulk‐heterojunction network of poly(3‐hexylthiophene) and phenyl [6,6] C₆₁ butyric acid methyl ester, one with slow degradation whereas other with faster degradation. Samples were prepared in identical conditions with controlled atmosphere, but for faster degradation, one of the samples was exposed to ambient air (rich in O₂ and H₂O molecules) before deposition of top metal electrode. The sample with slow degradation showed linear degradation in short circuit current density (J_sc), whereas the sample with faster degradation exhibited exponential degradation in J_sc. Linear degradation happens due to degradation in the active layer only whereas the exponential degradation is because of through degradation of the solar cell. The effect of degradation is investigated on different diode parameters. Because of different degradation processes in the two samples, the variations in diode parameters with time are different. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.