Efficient soluble PTCBI-type non-fullerene acceptor materials for organic solar cells

Single perylene diimide (PDI) used as a non-fullerene acceptor (NFA) in organic solar cells (OSCs) is enticing because of its low cost and excellent stability. To improve the photovoltaic performance, it is vital to narrow the bandgap and regulate the stacking behavior. To address this challenge, we synthesize soluble perylenetetracarboxylic bisbenzimidazole (PTCBI) molecules with a bulky side chain at the bay region, by replacing the widely used “swallow tail” type alkyl chains at the imide position of PDI molecules with a planar benzimidazole structure. Compared with PDI molecules, PTCBI molecules exhibit red-shifted UV–vis absorption spectra with larger extinction coefficient, and one magnitude higher electron mobility. Finally, OSCs based on one soluble PTCBI-type NFA, namely MAS-7, exhibit a champion power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 4.34%, which is significantly higher than that of the corresponding PDI-based OSCs and is the highest PCE of PTCBI-based OSCs reported. These results highlight the potential of soluble PTCBI derivatives as NFAs in OSCs. Graphical abstract