Bithiophene Imide‐Based “Chemically Homologous” Active Layer Enables Efficient and Stable All‐Polymer Solar Cells

Comprehensive Summary Precise control over the active layer morphology is critical for achieving high‐performance all‐polymer solar cells (all‐PSCs). In this study, we introduce a fully “chemically homologous” strategy, in which a series of tailored solid additives, polymer donor, and polymer acceptor are constructed from the same bithiophene imide (BTI) building block. Among them, the B3 additive, which shares an identical side chain with the donor, guides the formation of an optimal fibrillar network morphology with enhanced structural order. This optimized microstructure facilitates efficient exciton dissociation and charge transport, yielding a remarkable power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 18.52%—significantly surpassing those of additive‐free (14.54%) and non‐homologous reference devices (<17%). Furthermore, this chemically coherent approach promotes ordered molecular packing, simultaneously suppressing molecular disorder and non‐radiative energy loss, achieving a low energy loss ( E loss ) of 0.509 eV and a high open‐circuit voltage ( V OC ) of 0.943 V. The B3‐processed device also retains outstanding stability, maintaining over 97% of its initial PCE after 1240 h in a nitrogen atmosphere at room temperature. The chemically homologous paradigm demonstrated here provides crucial insights into morphology control and charge transport dynamics in all‐polymer blends, offering a promising pathway toward highly efficient and stable organic photovoltaics.

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Publication Details

Journal
Chinese Journal of Chemistry
Published
2026-01-29
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1002/cjoc.70456
Primary Topic
Organic Electronics and Photovoltaics
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

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article

Bithiophene Imide‐Based “Chemically Homologous” Active Layer Enables Efficient and Stable All‐Polymer Solar Cells

Henan Li, Qingqing Bai, Suxiang Ma, Jiaxu Che et al.
Chinese Journal of Chemistry
Organic Electronics and Photovoltaics
article

Bithiophene Imide‐Based “Chemically Homologous” Active Layer Enables Efficient and Stable All‐Polymer Solar Cells

Henan Li, Qingqing Bai, Suxiang Ma, Jiaxu Che, Wei Wang, Han Sun, Jong Bin Park, Junwu Chen, Li Niu, Mingqing Chen, Junyi Lu, Zhongxia Wang, Guangye Zhang, Xinxi Yang, Han Young Woo
article en

Abstract

Comprehensive Summary Precise control over the active layer morphology is critical for achieving high‐performance all‐polymer solar cells (all‐PSCs). In this study, we introduce a fully “chemically homologous” strategy, in which a series of tailored solid additives, polymer donor, and polymer acceptor are constructed from the same bithiophene imide (BTI) building block. Among them, the B3 additive, which shares an identical side chain with the donor, guides the formation of an optimal fibrillar network morphology with enhanced structural order. This optimized microstructure facilitates efficient exciton dissociation and charge transport, yielding a remarkable power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 18.52%—significantly surpassing those of additive‐free (14.54%) and non‐homologous reference devices (<17%). Furthermore, this chemically coherent approach promotes ordered molecular packing, simultaneously suppressing molecular disorder and non‐radiative energy loss, achieving a low energy loss ( E loss ) of 0.509 eV and a high open‐circuit voltage ( V OC ) of 0.943 V. The B3‐processed device also retains outstanding stability, maintaining over 97% of its initial PCE after 1240 h in a nitrogen atmosphere at room temperature. The chemically homologous paradigm demonstrated here provides crucial insights into morphology control and charge transport dynamics in all‐polymer blends, offering a promising pathway toward highly efficient and stable organic photovoltaics.

Chinese Journal of ChemistryVol. 44(8)
Anhui Agricultural University (CN), Anhui University (CN), Korea University (KR), Gannan Normal University (CN), Centre of Excellence for Advanced Materials (CN), Shenzhen Technology University (CN), State Key Laboratory of Polymer Physics and Chemistry (CN), South China University of Technology (CN)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, Department of Education of Guangdong Province, Guangzhou University, Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation of Guangdong Province
Affordable and clean energy
Openalex Percentile: Top 73%
Organic Electronics and Photovoltaics
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