Exploiting Noncovalently Conformational Locking as a Design Strategy for High Performance Fused-Ring Electron Acceptor Used in Polymer Solar Cells

We have developed a kind of novel fused-ring small molecular acceptor, whose planar conformation can be locked by intramolecular noncovalent interaction. The formation of planar supramolecular fused-ring structure by conformation locking can effectively broaden its absorption spectrum, enhance the electron mobility, and reduce the nonradiative energy loss. Polymer solar cells (PSCs) based on this acceptor afforded a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 9.6%. In contrast, PSCs based on similar acceptor, which cannot form a flat conformation, only gave a PCE of 2.3%. Such design strategy, which can make the synthesis of small molecular acceptor much easier, will be promising in developing a new acceptor for high…

• NN
  National Natural Science Foundation of China

  Awards: 20774099, 91233205, 51673028, 21574013
• MO
  Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China