Donor-acceptor-donor modular small organic molecules based on the naphthalene diimide acceptor unit for solution-processable photovoltaic devices

Two novel solution-processable small organic molecules, 4,9-bis(4-(diphenylamino)phenyl)-2,7-dioctylbenzo[3,8]phenanthroline-1,3,6,8(2H, 7H)-tetraone (S6) and 4,9-bis(benzo[b]thiophen-2-yl)-2,7-dioctylbenzo[3,8] phenanthroline-1,3,6,8 (2H,7H)-tetraone (S7), have been successfully designed, synthesized, characterized, and applied in solution-processable photovoltaic devices. S6 and S7 contain a common electron-accepting moiety, naphthalene diimide (NDI), with different electron-donating moieties, triphenylamine (S6) and benzothiophene (S7), and are based on a donor-acceptor-donor structure. S7 was isolated as black, rod-shaped crystals. Its triclinic structure was determined by single crystal x-ray diffraction (XRD): space group P1̄, Z = 2, a = 9.434(5) Å, b = 14.460(7) Å, c = 15.359(8) Å, α = 67.256(9) degrees, β = 80.356(11) degrees, γ = 76.618(10) degrees, at 150 Kelvin (K), R = 0.073. Ultraviolet-visible absorption spectra revealed that use of triphenylamine donor functionality with the NDI acceptor unit resulted in an enhanced intramolecular charge transfer (ICT) transition and reduction of the optical band gap compared with the benzothiophene analogue. Solution-processable inverted bulk heterojunction devices with the structure indium tin oxide/zinc oxide (30 nm)/active layer/molybdenum trioxide (10 nm)/silver (100 nm) were fabricated with S6 and S7 as donors and (6,6)-phenyl C70-butyric acid methyl ester (PC70BM) as acceptor. Power conversion efficiencies of 0.22% for S6/PC70BM and 0.10% for S7/PC70BM were achieved for the preliminary photovoltaic devices under simulated AM 1.5 illumination (100 mW cm-2). This paper reports donor-acceptor-donor modular small organic molecules, with NDI as central accepting unit, that have been screened for use in solution-processable inverted photovoltaic devices.