Organic-inorganic hybrid thin film solar cells using conducting polymer and gold nanoparticles

We employed poly(styrenesulfonate)-doped poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT:PSS) as a p-layer on textured fluorine-tin-oxide (FTO) glass in pin-type hydrogenated amorphous silicon solar cells (a-Si:H SCs). An amorphous tungsten oxide (WO₃) layer and gold nanoparticles (Au-NPs) 10 nm in size were included to prevent the degradation and to increase short-circuit current by the Plasmon effect, respectively, between the PEDOT:PSS and intrinsic-Si layer. The energy band between PEDOT:PSS and WO₃ was meaningfully adjusted by Au-NPs. The p-type PEDOT:PSS layer in these organic-inorganic hybrid a-Si:H SCs results in an increased conversion efficiency from ∼2.42 to ∼5.49 and an increased open-circuit voltage from ∼0.29 V to ∼0.56 V. PEDOT:PSS on textured FTO glass is sufficiently showing that it can replace the p-type Si layer in pin-type a-Si:H SCs.