Bis(trialkylsilyl oxide) Silicon Phthalocyanines: Understanding the Role of Solubility in Device Performance as Ternary Additives in Organic Photovoltaics.

The use of ternary additives in organic photovoltaics is a promising route for improving overall device performance. Silicon phthalocyanines (SiPcs) are ideal candidates due to their absorption profile, low cost, and ease of synthesis and chemical tunability. However, to date, only a few examples have been reported and specific strategies for aiding in the design of improved ternary additives have not been established. In this study, we report a relationship between ternary additive solubility and device performance, demonstrating that device performance is maximized when the SiPc additive solubility is similar to that of the donor polymer (P3HT, in this case). This improved performance can be attributed to the favored interfacial precipitation of the SiPc when its solubility matches that of the other components of the thin film. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) varied from 2.4% to 3.4% by using axially substituted SiPcs with different solubilities, where the best ternary additive led to a 25% increase in PCE compared to that of the baseline device.