Derek Stevens

Washington University in St. Louis; 2003
B.S. Chemical Engineering

Research: Nanostructure Control for the Improvement of Organic Solar Cells

Organic solar cells are a low cost, renewable source of alternative energy to potentially meet future energy demands and compete with traditional fossil fuels. My experimental work will examine fabrication methods for these cells, which consist of thin films of two organic materials in which nanoscale phase separation is essential to achieve optimized performance. The objective is to develop alternate fabrication protocals that will enhance performance for new materials. Specifically, we will study both thermal treatment of bilayer structures to form mixed films, methods of enhancing polymer domain crystallinity, as well as modifications to metal/organic contacts to improve charge transport.