Modeling of optical absorption in conjugated polymer/fullerene bulk-heterojunction plastic solar cells

To determine the actual absorption in the photoactive layer of a plastic solar cell, e.g. consisting of blend of poly (2-methoxy5-(3,7-dimethyloctyloxy)-1,4-phenylene vinylene )( MDMO-PPV) and a methanofullerene, w6,6x-Phenyl C -butyric acid methyl 61 ester (PCBM), a matrix formalism for the light propagation in this multi-layer system is applied. This calculation results in an upper limit for the incident photon to collected electron (IPCE) conversion efficiency for a given internal quantum efficiency. Comparisons with experimental results as well as conclusions for the optimal layer thickness are drawn. 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.