Objective
Organic solar cells (OSC) feature several advantages over “classical” silicon solar cells: low cost, energy effective production, low weight and semi-transparency. This makes them apt for novel applications like, building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) with high market potential. However, both the efficiency and the long-term stability must be enhanced for OSCs to become profitable. POCAONTAS will develop highly efficient and stable OSCs based on tailored blends of polymers (P) with single wall carbon nanotubes (SWNT), that are ideally suited for OSCs due to their inherent stability, high carrier mobility and the tunability of optical gaps. Up to now, no breakthrough in SWNT based OSC has been achieved due to challenges with the control of SWNT-chirality, -aggregation, orbital energy mismatch and nanoscale sample morphology. Our consortium will address these issues: We will synthesize functional polymers that (i) allow for a tailored selection of SWNT chiralities, and (ii) match the SWNT energy levels to polymers for maximization of efficiency. The introduction of SWNT-P exchange protocols enables us to optimize (i) and (ii) with different polymers, avoiding compromises in performance. We will obtain optimized donor-acceptor blends, in which the SWNTs are light antenna and charge transporter. We unify leading European groups in time- (down to 10 fs) and spatially (down to 10 nm) resolved spectroscopies providing unique insights into SWNT-P interactions at the molecular level. Experts in multi-scale quantum chemical modeling will develop greater predictive power of charge transport. FLEXINK, a startup in optoelectronics materials, will provide tailored polymers. KONARKA, world leader in commercial OSCs, will build and test solar cells using our blends. Both full partners can directly exploit the project’s outcome to strengthen their market position. Three associated industrial partners provide industry internships for each ESR maximizing their career perspectives.
Field of science
- /natural sciences/chemical sciences/polymer science
- /engineering and technology/environmental engineering/energy and fuels/renewable energy/solar energy
- /engineering and technology/civil engineering/architecture engineering/sustainable architecture/sustainable building
- /social sciences/economics and business/business and management/commerce
Call for proposal
FP7-PEOPLE-2012-ITN
See other projects for this call
Funding Scheme
MC-ITN - Networks for Initial Training (ITN)Coordinator
28049 Madrid
Spain
Participants (9)
97070 Wuerzburg
80539 Muenchen
48940 Leioa
16163 Genova
02300 Vilnius
1049-001 Lisboa
SW7 2AZ London
SO151JR Southampton
97318 Kitzingen
