Ternary organic solar cells incorporating zinc phthalocyanine with improved performance exceeding 8.5%Ternary organic solar cells incorporating zinc phthalocyanine with improved performance exceeding 8.5% Peer-Reviewed Journal Publication Δημοσίευση σε Περιοδικό με Κριτές 2018-03-192017enTernary organic photovoltaic devices have been fabricated, by introducing for the first time, a soluble zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc) small molecule into the poly-({4,8-bis[(2-thylhexyl)oxy]benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b’]dithiophene-2,6-diyl}{3-fluoro-2-[(2-ethylhexyl)carbonyl] thieno[3,4-b] thiophenediyl}) (PTB7):[6,6]-phenyl-C71-butyric acid methyl ester (PC71BM) active layer. The ZnPc acts as an electron cascade material, providing an efficient energy level offset between the polymeric donor (D) and the fullerene derivative acceptor (A), enhancing charge transfer, reducing exciton recombination and thus improving the photovoltaic performance of the devices. The fabricated ternary organic solar cells of the structure ITO/PEDOT:PSS/PTB7:ZnPc:PC71BM/Ca/Al led to a champion power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 8.52%, increased by ∼15% compared to the reference binary cell. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Dyes and Pigments146408-413 Στυλιανάκης Μηνάς Μ. Stylianakis Minas M. Viskadouros Georgios Βισκαδουρος Γεωργιος Vernardou Dimitra Κατσαράκης Νικόλαος Katsarakis Nikolaos Κουδουμάς Εμμανουήλ Koudoumas Emmanouil Anastasiadis, Spiros Haralambos Στρατάκης Εμμανουήλ Stratakis Emmanouel Kymakis, Emmanuel Κωνιός Δημήτριος Konios Dimitrios Elsevier Bulk heterojunction Cascade effect Charge transfer Phthalocyanine Ternary organic solar cells