Structural templating of multiple polycrystalline layers in organic photovoltaic cells.

We demonstrate that organic photovoltaic cell performance is influenced by changes in the crystalline orientation of composite layer structures. A 1.5 nm thick self-organized, polycrystalline template layer of 3,4,9,10-perylenetetracarboxylic dianhydride (PTCDA) orients subsequently deposited layers of a diindenoperylene exciton blocking layer, and the donor, copper phthalocyanine (CuPc). Control over the crystalline orientation of the CuPc leads to changes in its frontier energy levels, absorption coefficient, and surface morphology, resulting in an increase of power conversion efficiency at 1 sun from 1.42 ± 0.04% to 2.19 ± 0.05% for a planar heterojunction and from 1.89 ± 0.05% to 2.49 ± 0.03% for a planar-mixed heterojunction.