Operational stability and degradation of organic solar cells

Abstract

Recently, Organic solar cells (OSC) have been increasingly utilized all over the
world. The changes made in the organic components of the organic solar cells
enable them to exhibit good features such as mechanical flexibility, lightness
and high power generation efficiency even under lower light intensities.
However, operational stability is an important parameter for organic solar cells.
Despite the aforementioned advantages of organic solar cells, degradation in
operational environments limits their use in harsh conditions. Studies have
shown that the organic layer and the cathode layer of the OSCs are degraded by
external factors, and this adversely affects the operational stability and
productivity of OSCs considerably. The overall efficiency of an organic solar
cell is defined as a function of life cycle and efficiency of energy generation.
Therefore, the shorter the life cycle becomes, the lesser the overall efficiency
of OSCs gets. Recent studies are focused on improving the operational stability
and power generation efficiencies of OSCs by reducing the effects degradation
induced by external factors, such as climatic conditions and thermal fatigue.
The purpose of this study is to assess how organic solar cells work, how they
degrade from external factors, such as water and water vapor, and how these
parameters affect the operational stability as well as the efficiency of the
organic solar cells.