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Breaking Crystallinity for Optimal Dark Current: Nonfullerene Acceptor Dilution as a Strategy for High‐Performance Organic Photodetectors

Chiara Labanti Orcid Logo, Ying Sun, Joel Luke Orcid Logo, Yifan Dong Orcid Logo, Song Yi Park, Yi‐Chun Chin Orcid Logo, Tianhao Lan, Emily J. Yang Orcid Logo, Lei Zhang Orcid Logo, Soranyel Gonzalez‐Carrero Orcid Logo, James Durrant, Ji‐Seon Kim Orcid Logo

Advanced Optical Materials, Volume: 13, Issue: 19, Start page: 2500255

Swansea University Author: James Durrant

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DOI (Published version): 10.1002/adom.202500255

Abstract

Organic photodetectors (OPDs) based on polymer donor:non‐fullerene‐acceptor (NFA) bulk heterojunction (BHJ) blends demonstrate great potential for light‐sensing applications, thanks to optoelectronic tunability and strong absorption. However, state‐of‐the‐art organic photoconversion devices lag behi...

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Published in: Advanced Optical Materials
ISSN: 2195-1071 2195-1071
Published: Wiley 2025
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa69550
Abstract: Organic photodetectors (OPDs) based on polymer donor:non‐fullerene‐acceptor (NFA) bulk heterojunction (BHJ) blends demonstrate great potential for light‐sensing applications, thanks to optoelectronic tunability and strong absorption. However, state‐of‐the‐art organic photoconversion devices lag behind silicon counterparts due to the laborious dark current, Jd, and photodetection speed optimization required in OPDs. Herein, the donor/acceptor blend ratio is controlled to optimize PM6:Y6‐based OPDs, with diluted Y6 blends (1:0.1 D/A weight ratio) strongly suppressing Jd to 6.5 × 10−9 A cm−2 (−4 V). Diluted OPDs exhibit faster photoresponse and poor short‐circuit photocurrent generation is dramatically improved under reverse bias. In‐depth photophysical and energetic analysis reveal the origin of high performance. In diluted blends, dissociation of emissive strongly bound excitonic charge‐transfer states within Y6 require electric field assistance, while the polymer matrix provides a continuous charge‐transport pathway. The generality of this strategy is tested with various NFAs, with NFA dilution being most effective for highly crystalline acceptors. It is determined that the reduction in dark current is predominantly driven by disruption of NFA crystallinity and intermolecular interactions. Polymer‐rich BHJ devices, therefore, provide an effective optimization method for reducing dark current in OPDs and are highly promising for industrial scalability due to facile processability, robust mechanical properties, and superior thermal stability.
Keywords: charge generation, dark current, organic photoconversion, organic photodetectors, organic semiconductors
College: Faculty of Science and Engineering
Funders: The authors acknowledge the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council for funding through both the Application Targeted and Integrated Photovoltaics programme grant (EP/T028513/1) and the Centre for Doctoral Training in Plastic Electronic Materials (EP/L016702/1).
Issue: 19
Start Page: 2500255