Speakers

Prof. LU is an associate professor in the Department of Physics, the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She received her bachelor’s degree from Nanjing University and PhD degree from Yale University. Then, she worked as a postdoctoral research associate at Brookhaven National Laboratory before joining CUHK. Her research interest lies in energy related material science and experimental soft condensed matter physics, including morphology and device performance of organic and perovskite photovoltaic materials, bulk and surface structure of functional thin films and synchrotron x-ray scattering techniques. She is a council member of Physical Society of Hong Kong and Chinese Neutron Scattering Society, and Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher 2020.

Microstructure Studies of Organic and Perovskite Solar Cells Based on Grazing Incidence Scattering Techniques

Abstract

Nowadays, solar industry becomes the fastest growing industry due to the rising demands to solve the energy crisis and environmental problems. Third-generation solar cells, such as organic and perovskite solar cells are all relying on a semiconducting thin-film active layer to harvest the solar energy. The bulk morphology of the active layer in terms of crystal structure, orientation, grain size and nanophase separation behaviors is known to be critical to the solar cell device performance. Here, we will present our recent studies on the process-structure-device correlation of organic and perovskite solar cells. In these studies, state-of-art grazing incidence scattering techniques using X-rays and neutrons were employed for various purposes, such as grazing incidence wide-angle/small-angle X-ray scattering (GIWAXS/GISAXS), grazing incidence transmission small-angle X-ray scattering (GTSAXS), grazing incidence neutron scattering (GISANS). These techniques can also be applied in material science, chemistry, biology and condensed matter physics studies. By modifying the wavelength of the probing beam and the experimental geometry, a variety of sample types, such as solutions, powders, surfaces and thin films, can be studied, covering wide length scales as well as versatile dynamic and kinetic behaviors.

Keywords: Organic Photovoltaics, Perovskite Solar Cells, GIWAXS, GTSAXS, GISANS

Reference

1. X. Xia, T-K. Lau, X. Guo, Y. Li, M. Qin, K. Liu, Z. Chen, X. Zhan, Y. Xiao, P. F. Chan, H. Liu, L. Xu, G. Cai, N. Li, H. Zhu, G. Li, Y. Zhu, T. Zhu, X. Zhan, X-L. Wang and X. Lu*, Uncovering the Out-of-plane Nanomorphology of Organic Photovoltaic Bulk Heterojunction by GTSAXS, Nature Communications, 2021, 12, 6226.
2. M. Qin, H. Xue, H. Zhang, H. Hu, K. Liu, Y. Li, Z. Qin, J. Ma, H. Zhu, K. Yan, G. Fang, G. Li, U-S. Jeng, G. Brocks, S. Tao*, and X. Lu*, Precise Control of Perovskite Crystallization Kinetics via Sequential A-site Doping, Advanced Materials, 2020, 2004630.
3. M. Qin, K. Tse, T.-K Lau, Y. Li, C.-J. Su, G. Yang, J. Chen, J. Zhu, U-S. Jeng, G. Li, H. Chen, and X. Lu*, Manipulating the Mixed-Perovskite Crystallization Pathway Unveiled by In Situ GIWAXS, Advanced Materials, 2019, 1901284.
4. J. Mai, Y. Xiao, G. Zhou, J. Wang, J. Zhu, N. Zhao, X. Zhan, X. Lu*, Hidden Structure Ordering along Backbone of Fused-ring Electron Acceptors Enhanced by Ternary Bulk Heterojunction, Advanced Materials, 2018, 1802888.