Optically-enhanced performance of polymer solar cells with low concentration of gold nanorods in the anodic buffer layer

► Effect of gold nanorods on the performance of bulk heterojunction solar cells investigated. ► Gold nanorods were introduced into the anodic buffer layer by blending. ► A low density of gold nanorods showed a remarkable 21.3% enhancement in the power conversion efficiency. ► Enhancements are related to the localized plasmon resonance modes in the metallic nanoparticles. ► A reduction of 36% in the device series resistance is also observed.