Optical-electrical simulation of organic solar cells: Influence of light trapping by photonic crystal and ZnO spacer on electrical characteristics

Abstract : This paper deals with organic solar cells (OSC) simulation using finite element method. Optical modeling is performed via finite difference time domain method whilst the continuity and Poisson's equations are solved to obtain electrical characteristics of the OSC. In this work, simulation results point out the OSC structure influence on its performances, either by the interfacegrating or by the ZnO optical spacer introduced between the active layer (P3HT:PCBM layer) and the metallic electrode. The comparison of modeling results and experimental measurement allows us to confirm and forecast the enhancement of the photovoltaic properties such as the power conversion efficiency.