This talk will review recent advances in the design, synthesis, and characterization of organic acceptors and donors for photovoltaic applications. In particular, we will focus on compounds in which multiple acceptors are arranged in a three-dimensional (3D) architecture and that are possible replacements for fullerenes in organic bulk-heterojunction solar cells. Most non-fullerene acceptors examined to date are often quasi one-dimensional planar moieties that form p-stacks. Although these materials can often exhibit acceptably large electron mobility values in the p-stacking direction, correct alignment of the p-stacking for effective charge extraction can be challenging. Moreover, they may be more sensitive than fullerenes to the effects of charge trapping at defect sites and may exhibit an increased probability of charge recombination. Recently, compounds that have a more 3D architecture have been shown to exhibit favorable properties as acceptors. We have embarked on a systematic study of 3D acceptors to begin to understand the structural features that can results in the formation of high efficiency bulk-heterojunction solar cells and we will report on our preliminary results from this study. <br/>3D molecular donor materials based on spiro linking of two fused-ring “arms” will also be discussed.

Design, synthesis, and properties of 3D molecules for organic photovoltaic applications

251st National Meeting (2016)

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