A solution-processable electron acceptor based on diketopyrrolopyrrole and naphthalenediimide motifs for organic solar cells

A novel, solution-processable small molecular electron acceptor (HP1) based on diketopyrrolopyrrole and naphthalenediimide fragments was designed and synthesized via a Stille coupling reaction, characterized by spectroscopic means, and exhibited excellent solubility and thermal stability. HP1 exerted strong and very broad absorption tailing into the near infra-red region, with appropriate energy levels matching with the archetypal electron donor, poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT), and afforded 1.02% power conversion efficiency with a high open-circuit voltage (1.05 V) when tested in solution-processable bulk-heterojunction devices.