Soluble asymmetric perylene derivatives for organic solar cells

Organic acceptor material has been developed based on soluble perylene derivative for an organic solar cell. Asymmetric perylene derivatives with an imide and an imidazole group produce absorption spectra close to poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) as a donor material. The frontier energy levels of the perylene derivatives can adjust to reasonable charge transmission within a blended polymer layer through the introduction of substituents such as alkoxy, nitro and alkoxycarbonyl group. The nitro group unlike the others leads to the exceeding decrement of the frontier energy levels, which would be unfavorable for efficient charge transfer. Cyclic voltammetry analysis is performed to determine the energy levels of the perylene derivatives.