Heidelberg University researchers developed a spectroscopic method that measures the energy inside solar cells based on organic materials. Scientists can now visualize with high precision the physical principles of organic photovoltaics and study losses in energy.
"Mapping our Earth's landscapes was a necessary step for understanding the movement patterns and dynamics of people, animals, and water, among other examples," explains Prof. Vaynzof, research group leader at the Kirchhoff Institute for Physics at Heidelberg University. "Similarly, the movement of electric charges in a solar cell is determined by the energetic landscape within the device." Until now, visualizing these energetic landscapes was so challenging that only rough estimates could be used to study the fundamental processes in organic photovoltaic devices, according to Eureka Alert.
The novel method has an advantage in its versatility and high resolution in mapping the energetic landscape on a nanometer scale. According to Prof. Vaynzof, their work solves a key problem in the field of organic photovoltaics. "Without mapping the energetic landscapes, it is difficult to understand how and why devices lose energy in the process of converting light into electricity. Now we have a spectroscopic method that allows us to develop new generations of solar cells with reduced energy losses and improved performance", emphasizes the scientist, who heads the "Organic Electronics" research group at the Kirchhoff Institute for Physics and works at the Centre for Advanced Materials of Heidelberg University.
