Investigation of optical and chemical properties of poly(3-methylthiophene) and polypyrrole for solar cell fabrication

In this study, we have investigated the optical and chemical properties of thin film layers based on poly(3-methylthiophene) and polypyrrole through experiment and simulation point of view. Optical band gap of poly(3-methylthiophene-co-pyrrole) (poly(3-MeT-co-py)) and poly(3-methylthiophene) (PMeT) were investigated through UV–vis spectroscopy. Electrochemical data were used to estimate the onset oxidation and reduction potential, energy band diagram and chemical band gap of PMeT and poly(3-MeT-co-py). The experiments were carried out in a three-electrode cell with ITO as the working electrode. Influence of different electrodes on PMeT thin film's energy levels was studied in electrochemical polymerization. Different thin films by poly(3-methylthiophene) and polypyrrole were utilized in order to fabricate organic solar cells and their photovoltaic properties were offered. Moreover, an optical modeling based on thin film matrix formalism has been carried out which investigated absorption processes in single layer solar cell by PMeT. From the simulation, photons absorbed profiles and energy dissipation in term of wavelength and distance in depth of cell were derived in active layer.