Toward large scale and roll-to-roll fabrication of tco-free organic solar cells

Solar electricity is one of the renewable energy sources that contribute to the energy world’s request. Organic solar cells (OPV) represent an attractive 3rd generation solar technology that can be produced cheaply and very fast from solution with printing processes. Indeed, in the last few decades, the use of organic materials for the realization of electronic devices, especially solar cells, has gained the attention of the research community. This is due to the possibility to use solution-processing techniques that allow a low-cost fabrication, suitable also on flexible substrates, and the tailoring of the material properties for specific applications. All solution processed bulk Heterojunction (BHJ) solar cells could be a promising answer for solar energy conversion. This work is mainly focused on the use of spray-coating technique as a practical and simple way to deposit thin organic films; it is demonstrated the possibility to realize all organic layer by this technique including the active layer with low band gap polymers. With the aim to realize all-solution processed devices an investigation about inkjet printing technique to realize both electrode was carried out, and in order to realize a process Roll-to-Roll compatible, it was considered an alternative sintering method (photonic flash sintering) that allows to obtain high conductivity in very short time.