1. |
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2. |
- Beal, Jacob, et al.
(author)
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Robust estimation of bacterial cell count from optical density
- 2020
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In: Communications Biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2399-3642. ; 3:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Optical density (OD) is widely used to estimate the density of cells in liquid culture, but cannot be compared between instruments without a standardized calibration protocol and is challenging to relate to actual cell count. We address this with an interlaboratory study comparing three simple, low-cost, and highly accessible OD calibration protocols across 244 laboratories, applied to eight strains of constitutive GFP-expressing E. coli. Based on our results, we recommend calibrating OD to estimated cell count using serial dilution of silica microspheres, which produces highly precise calibration (95.5% of residuals <1.2-fold), is easily assessed for quality control, also assesses instrument effective linear range, and can be combined with fluorescence calibration to obtain units of Molecules of Equivalent Fluorescein (MEFL) per cell, allowing direct comparison and data fusion with flow cytometry measurements: in our study, fluorescence per cell measurements showed only a 1.07-fold mean difference between plate reader and flow cytometry data.
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3. |
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4. |
- Sun, Xiao-dong, et al.
(author)
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Implementing a novel capture and ligation probe-PCR method in mass screen and treatment to support malaria elimination efforts in the China-Myanmar border region
- 2023
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In: Malaria Journal. - : BioMed Central (BMC). - 1475-2875. ; 22:1
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BackgroundMass screening and treatment (MSAT) for malaria elimination lacks an ideal diagnostic tool to allow sensitive and affordable test of the target population in the field. This study evaluated whether Capture and Ligation Probe-PCR (CLIP-PCR) could be used in a field MSAT in Laiza City, Myanmar.MethodsOn day 0, two dried blood spots were collected from each participant. On day 1, all samples were screened for Plasmodium in a 20 m(2) laboratory with workbench, a biosafety cabinet, a refrigerator, a benchtop shaking incubator and a qPCR machine, by four technicians using CLIP-PCR with sample pooling, at a health clinic of the Chinese bordering town of Nabang. On day 2, all positives were followed up and treated.ResultsOf 15,038 persons (65% of the total population) screened, 204 (1.36%) were CLIP-PCR positives. Among them, 188, 14, and 2 were infected with Plasmodium vivax, Plasmodium falciparum, and P. vivax/P. falciparum mix, respectively. The testing capacity was 538 persons/day, with a cost of US$0.92 /person. The proportion of submicroscopic infection was 64.7%. All positive individuals received treatment within 72 h after blood collection.ConclusionUsing CLIP-PCR in MSAT in low transmission settings can support the malaria elimination efforts in the China-Myanmar border region.
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5. |
- Tang, Ting-Ting, et al.
(author)
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Impaired thymic export and apoptosis contribute to regulatory T-cell defects in patients with chronic heart failure.
- 2011
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In: PLoS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203 .- 1932-6203. ; 6:9, s. e24272-
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Animal studies suggest that regulatory T (T(reg)) cells play a beneficial role in ventricular remodeling and our previous data have demonstrated defects of T(reg) cells in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). However, the mechanisms behind T(reg-)cell defects remained unknown. We here sought to elucidate the mechanism of T(reg-)cell defects in CHF patients.
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6. |
- Cai, Yunhao, et al.
(author)
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Effect of the Energy Offset on the Charge Dynamics in Nonfullerene Organic Solar Cells
- 2020
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In: ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces. - : AMER CHEMICAL SOC. - 1944-8244 .- 1944-8252. ; 12:39, s. 43984-43991
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The energy offset, considered as the driving force for charge transfer between organic molecules, has significant effects on both charge separation and charge recombination in organic solar cells. Herein, we designed material systems with gradually shifting energy offsets, including both positive and negative values. Time-resolved spectroscopy was used to monitor the charge dynamics within the bulk heterojunction. It is striking to find that there is still charge transfer and charge generation when the energy offset reached -0.10 eV (ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy data). This work not only indicates the feasibility of the free carrier generation and the following charge separation under the condition of a negative offset but also elucidates the relationship between the charge transfer and the energy offset in the case of polymer chlorination.
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7. |
- Eriksson, Kimmo, et al.
(author)
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Perceptions of the appropriate response to norm violation in 57 societies
- 2021
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In: Nature Communications. - : Nature Research. - 2041-1723. ; 12:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Norm enforcement may be important for resolving conflicts and promoting cooperation. However, little is known about how preferred responses to norm violations vary across cultures and across domains. In a preregistered study of 57 countries (using convenience samples of 22,863 students and non-students), we measured perceptions of the appropriateness of various responses to a violation of a cooperative norm and to atypical social behaviors. Our findings highlight both cultural universals and cultural variation. We find a universal negative relation between appropriateness ratings of norm violations and appropriateness ratings of responses in the form of confrontation, social ostracism and gossip. Moreover, we find the country variation in the appropriateness of sanctions to be consistent across different norm violations but not across different sanctions. Specifically, in those countries where use of physical confrontation and social ostracism is rated as less appropriate, gossip is rated as more appropriate. Little is known about peoples preferred responses to norm violations across countries. Here, in a study of 57 countries, the authors highlight cultural similarities and differences in peoples perception of the appropriateness of norm violations.
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8. |
- Fan, Baobing, et al.
(author)
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Correlation of Local Isomerization Induced Lateral and Terminal Torsions with Performance and Stability of Organic Photovoltaics
- 2023
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In: Journal of the American Chemical Society. - : AMER CHEMICAL SOC. - 0002-7863 .- 1520-5126. ; 145:10, s. 5909-5919
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Organic photovoltaics (OPVs) have achieved great progress in recent years due to delicately designed non-fullerene acceptors (NFAs). Compared with tailoring of the aromatic heterocycles on the NFA backbone, the incorporation of conjugated side-groups is a cost-effective way to improve the photoelectrical properties of NFAs. However, the modifications of side-groups also need to consider their effects on device stability since the molecular planarity changes induced by side-groups are related to the NFA aggregation and the evolution of the blend morphology under stresses. Herein, a new class of NFAs with localisomerized conjugated side-groups are developed and the impact of local isomerization on their geometries and device performance/stability are systematically investigated. The device based on one of the isomers with balanced side- and terminal-group torsion angles can deliver an impressive power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 18.5%, with a low energy loss (0.528 V) and an excellent photo- and thermal stability. A similar approach can also be applied to another polymer donor to achieve an even higher PCE of 18.8%, which is among the highest efficiencies obtained for binary OPVs. This work demonstrates the effectiveness of applying local isomerization to fine-tune the side-group steric effect and non-covalent interactions between side-group and backbone, therefore improving both photovoltaic performance and stability of fused ring NFA-based OPVs.
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9. |
- Isomaki, Iikka, et al.
(author)
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Thermodynamic assessment of ZnO-SiO2 system
- 2018
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In: Transactions of Nonferrous Metals Society of China. - : Elsevier. - 1003-6326 .- 2210-3384. ; 28:9, s. 1869-1877
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- ZnO-containing slags are common in pyrometallurgical processing of the base metals and steel. This caused the interest to the thermodynamics of the ZnO-SiO2 system. A complete literature survey, critical evaluation of the available experimental data and a thermodynamic optimization of the phase equilibria and thermodynamic properties of the system ZnO-SiO2 at 1.013x10(5) Pa are presented. The molten oxide was described as an associate solution. The properties of liquid were reassessed and enthalpy term of the Gibbs energy of solid Zn2SiO4 was re-fitted to be compatible with the new data in the willemite primary phase field. The thermodynamic data set agrees well with the recent experimental observations. It can be used for predicting, e.g., the thermodynamic properties and the domains of the phase diagram, like critical point of the liquid miscibility gap, with a better accuracy than using the previous assessments. A set of optimized model parameters were obtained, reproducing the reliable thermodynamic and phase equilibrium data within their experimental errors from 298 K to liquidus temperatures, over the entire composition range. The created database can be used in a Gibbs energy minimization software to calculate the thermodynamic properties and the phase diagram sections of interest.
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10. |
- Jhun, Mina-A, et al.
(author)
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A multi-ethnic epigenome-wide association study of leukocyte DNA methylation and blood lipids
- 2021
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In: Nature Communications. - : Springer Nature. - 2041-1723. ; 12:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Here we examine the association between DNA methylation in circulating leukocytes and blood lipids in a multi-ethnic sample of 16,265 subjects. We identify 148, 35, and 4 novel associations among Europeans, African Americans, and Hispanics, respectively, and an additional 186 novel associations through a trans-ethnic meta-analysis. We observe a high concordance in the direction of effects across racial/ethnic groups, a high correlation of effect sizes between high-density lipoprotein and triglycerides, a modest overlap of associations with epigenome-wide association studies of other cardio-metabolic traits, and a largely non-overlap with lipid loci identified to date through genome-wide association studies. Thirty CpGs reached significance in at least 2 racial/ethnic groups including 7 that showed association with the expression of an annotated gene. CpGs annotated to CPT1A showed evidence of being influenced by triglycerides levels. DNA methylation levels of circulating leukocytes show robust and consistent association with blood lipid levels across multiple racial/ethnic groups. Abnormal blood lipid levels are important risk factors for cardiovascular and other various diseases. Here the authors conduct a large-scale multi-ethnic epigenome-wide association study combined with epigenetic (cis-QTL and eQTM) data, and identify CpG-lipid traits associations that are specific to or common across racial/ethnic groups.
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11. |
- Kanoni, Stavroula, et al.
(author)
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Implicating genes, pleiotropy, and sexual dimorphism at blood lipid loci through multi-ancestry meta-analysis.
- 2022
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In: Genome biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1474-760X .- 1465-6906 .- 1474-7596. ; 23:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Genetic variants within nearly 1000 loci are known to contribute to modulation of blood lipid levels. However, the biological pathways underlying these associations are frequently unknown, limiting understanding of these findings and hindering downstream translational efforts such as drug target discovery.To expand our understanding of the underlying biological pathways and mechanisms controlling blood lipid levels, we leverage a large multi-ancestry meta-analysis (N=1,654,960) of blood lipids to prioritize putative causal genes for 2286 lipid associations using six gene prediction approaches. Using phenome-wide association (PheWAS) scans, we identify relationships of genetically predicted lipid levels to other diseases and conditions. We confirm known pleiotropic associations with cardiovascular phenotypes and determine novel associations, notably with cholelithiasis risk. We perform sex-stratified GWAS meta-analysis of lipid levels and show that 3-5% of autosomal lipid-associated loci demonstrate sex-biased effects. Finally, we report 21 novel lipid loci identified on the X chromosome. Many of the sex-biased autosomal and X chromosome lipid loci show pleiotropic associations with sex hormones, emphasizing the role of hormone regulation in lipid metabolism.Taken together, our findings provide insights into the biological mechanisms through which associated variants lead to altered lipid levels and potentially cardiovascular disease risk.
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12. |
- Klionsky, Daniel J., et al.
(author)
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Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy
- 2012
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In: Autophagy. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1554-8635 .- 1554-8627. ; 8:4, s. 445-544
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In 2008 we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, research on this topic has continued to accelerate, and many new scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Accordingly, it is important to update these guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Various reviews have described the range of assays that have been used for this purpose. Nevertheless, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to measure autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. A key point that needs to be emphasized is that there is a difference between measurements that monitor the numbers or volume of autophagic elements (e.g., autophagosomes or autolysosomes) at any stage of the autophagic process vs. those that measure flux through the autophagy pathway (i.e., the complete process); thus, a block in macroautophagy that results in autophagosome accumulation needs to be differentiated from stimuli that result in increased autophagic activity, defined as increased autophagy induction coupled with increased delivery to, and degradation within, lysosomes (in most higher eukaryotes and some protists such as Dictyostelium) or the vacuole (in plants and fungi). In other words, it is especially important that investigators new to the field understand that the appearance of more autophagosomes does not necessarily equate with more autophagy. In fact, in many cases, autophagosomes accumulate because of a block in trafficking to lysosomes without a concomitant change in autophagosome biogenesis, whereas an increase in autolysosomes may reflect a reduction in degradative activity. Here, we present a set of guidelines for the selection and interpretation of methods for use by investigators who aim to examine macroautophagy and related processes, as well as for reviewers who need to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of papers that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a formulaic set of rules, because the appropriate assays depend in part on the question being asked and the system being used. In addition, we emphasize that no individual assay is guaranteed to be the most appropriate one in every situation, and we strongly recommend the use of multiple assays to monitor autophagy. In these guidelines, we consider these various methods of assessing autophagy and what information can, or cannot, be obtained from them. Finally, by discussing the merits and limits of particular autophagy assays, we hope to encourage technical innovation in the field.
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13. |
- Li, Chun-Xia, et al.
(author)
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Lattice parameters and relative stability of alpha '' phase in binary titanium alloys from first-principles calculations
- 2013
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In: Solid State Communications. - : Elsevier BV. - 0038-1098 .- 1879-2766. ; 159, s. 70-75
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The crystallographic structure and stability of the alpha" phase relative to the alpha and beta phases in Ti-x M (M=Ta, Nb, V, Mo) alloys are investigated by using the first-principles exact muffin-tin orbital method in combination with the coherent potential approximation. We show that, with increasing concentration of the alloying elements, the structure of the orthorhombic-alpha'' phase evolutes from the hcp-alpha to the bcc-beta phase, i.e., the lattice parameters b/a and c/a as well as the basal shuffle y decreases from those corresponding to the alpha phase to those of the beta phase. The compositional alpha/alpha" and alpha"/beta phase boundaries are determined by comparing the total energies of the phases. The predicted alpha/alpha" phase boundaries are about 10.2, 10.5, 11.5, 4.5 at% for Ti-V, Ti-Nb, Ti-Ta, and Ti-Mo, respectively, in reasonable agreement with experiments. The alpha"/beta phase boundaries are higher than the experimental values, possibly due to the absence of temperature effect in the first-principles calculations. Analyzing the electronic density of states, we propose that the stability of the alpha" phase is controlled by the compromise between the strength of the covalent and metallic bonds.
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14. |
- Liu, Heng, et al.
(author)
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Defect Management and Ion Infiltration Barrier Enable High-Performance Perovskite Solar Cells
- 2024
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In: ACS Energy Letters. - 2380-8195. ; 9:6, s. 2790-2799
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The stability of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) has been considered as one of the major obstacles toward practical application. Defects in the perovskite layer and ion infiltration from the hole transport layer (HTL) can trigger degradation of n-i-p PSCs. Herein, phenylhydrazine-4-sulfonic acid (PHPA) was employed as an additive to modulate perovskite crystallization during film formation, enlarging the perovskite crystal grain sizes to ∼3 μm. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed that PHPA could effectively inhibit the formation of iodine vacancies (VI) and passivate the under-coordinated Pb2+ ions. Additionally, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) was adopted to passivate the surface located dangling Pb2+ defects, improve the surface hydrophobicity, and inhibit Li+ ion migration from the HTL to the bottom perovskite, thus enhancing the device’s environmental and operational stability. Consequently, the resulting devices delivered a champion efficiency of 25.1% with an excellent maximum-power-point (MPP) tracking stability.
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15. |
- Qian, Deping, et al.
(author)
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Correlating the Hybridization of Local-Exciton and Charge-Transfer States with Charge Generation in Organic Solar Cells
- 2023
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In: Advanced Energy Materials. - : WILEY-V C H VERLAG GMBH. - 1614-6832 .- 1614-6840. ; 13
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In organic solar cells with very small energetic-offset (& UDelta;ELE - CT), the charge-transfer (CT) and local-exciton (LE) states strongly interact via electronic hybridization and thermal population effects, suppressing the non-radiative recombination. Here, we investigated the impact of these effects on charge generation and recombination. In the blends of PTO2:C8IC and PTO2:Y6 with very small, ultra-fast CT state formation was observed, and assigned to direct photoexcitation resulting from strong hybridization of the LE and CT states (i.e., LE-CT intermixed states). These states in turn accelerate the recombination of both CT and charge separated (CS) states. Moreover, they can be significantly weakened by an external-electric field, which enhanced the yield of CT and CS states but attenuated the emission of the device. This study highlights that excessive LE-CT hybridization due to very low , whilst enabling direct and ultrafast charge transfer and increasing the proportion of radiative versus non-radiative recombination rates, comes at the expense of accelerating recombination losses competing with exciton-to-charge conversion process, resulting in a loss of photocurrent generation.
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16. |
- Qin, Ning, 1990, et al.
(author)
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Flux regulation through glycolysis and respiration is balanced by inositol pyrophosphates in yeast
- 2023
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In: Cell. - : Elsevier BV. - 0092-8674 .- 1097-4172. ; 186:4, s. 748-763.e15
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Although many prokaryotes have glycolysis alternatives, it's considered as the only energy-generating glucose catabolic pathway in eukaryotes. Here, we managed to create a hybrid-glycolysis yeast. Subsequently, we identified an inositol pyrophosphatase encoded by OCA5 that could regulate glycolysis and respiration by adjusting 5-diphosphoinositol 1,2,3,4,6-pentakisphosphate (5-InsP7) levels. 5-InsP7 levels could regulate the expression of genes involved in glycolysis and respiration, representing a global mechanism that could sense ATP levels and regulate central carbon metabolism. The hybrid-glycolysis yeast did not produce ethanol during growth under excess glucose and could produce 2.68 g/L free fatty acids, which is the highest reported production in shake flask of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This study demonstrated the significance of hybrid-glycolysis yeast and determined Oca5 as an inositol pyrophosphatase controlling the balance between glycolysis and respiration, which may shed light on the role of inositol pyrophosphates in regulating eukaryotic metabolism.
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17. |
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18. |
- Wang, Ning, et al.
(author)
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Boride-derived oxygen-evolution catalysts
- 2021
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In: Nature Communications. - : Springer Nature. - 2041-1723. ; 12
-
Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Metal borides/borates have been considered promising as oxygen evolution reaction catalysts; however, to date, there is a dearth of evidence of long-term stability at practical current densities. Here we report a phase composition modulation approach to fabricate effective borides/borates-based catalysts. We find that metal borides in-situ formed metal borates are responsible for their high activity. This knowledge prompts us to synthesize NiFe-Boride, and to use it as a templating precursor to form an active NiFe-Borate catalyst. This boride-derived oxide catalyzes oxygen evolution with an overpotential of 167 mV at 10 mA/cm2 in 1 M KOH electrolyte and requires a record-low overpotential of 460 mV to maintain water splitting performance for over 400 h at current density of 1 A/cm2. We couple the catalyst with CO reduction in an alkaline membrane electrode assembly electrolyser, reporting stable C2H4 electrosynthesis at current density 200 mA/cm2 for over 80 h.
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19. |
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20. |
- Wang, Xin ping, et al.
(author)
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Spatiotemporal variation of soil water potential and its significance to water balance for a desert shrub area
- 2022
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In: Soil and Tillage Research. - : Elsevier BV. - 0167-1987. ; 224
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In dry sandy soil, soil water is naturally redistributed by forces owing to matric and gravitational potential, and temperature gradients. Occurring shrub vegetation strongly influences these patterns by hydraulic redistribution within the soil. This means that plants can move water from moist to drier soil areas to extract nutrients from the drier soil and enhance nutrient uptake. This incorporates both upward and downward transport of water through the roots. Diel soil water potential (ψs) and soil temperature fluctuation were investigated at 30-min intervals for a respectively vegetated desert shrub area and non-vegetated bare area. Soil water potential fluctuations at the vegetated area reflected daytime depletion and nocturnal re-supply of water due to hydraulic redistribution while corresponding fluctuations at the non-vegetated area were mainly due to variation in soil temperature. Thus, the greatest diel ψs variability occurred in the vegetated area that averaged −0.401 MPa with a smaller variation in the non-vegetated area with an average of −0.009 MPa. At the shrub scale, ψs was strongly correlated with root distribution pattern that corroborates that diel variation in the active root zone of the shrub was mainly attributed to hydraulic redistribution. In the non-vegetated area, ψs responded more strongly to temperature gradients. The total of hydraulic redistribution of soil water storage increment accounted for 27 % of the total rainfall through the growing season from April to September. The study shows that it is important to consider biotic-factors such as hydraulic redistribution when analyzing water balance changes and hydrological niche segregation for desert ecosystems.
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21. |
- Wu, Jing, et al.
(author)
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Can dementia risk be reduced by following the American Heart Association's Life's Simple 7? : A systematic review and dose-response meta-analysis.
- 2023
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In: Ageing Research Reviews. - : Elsevier. - 1568-1637 .- 1872-9649. ; 83
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- This study aimed to quantify the relationships between the American Heart Association (AHA) Cardiovascular Health (CVH) metrics, namely AHA Life's Simple 7, and cognitive outcomes. We searched PubMed and Embase (January 1, 2010-August 24, 2022) and finally included 14 longitudinal studies (311654 participants with 8006 incident dementia cases). Random-effects meta-analysis and one-stage linear mixed-effects models were performed. Increased CVH score seemed to associate with decreased risk of incident dementia in a linear manner, but this relationship varied by the measurement age of CVH metrics. That is, midlife CVH tended to have a linear association with late-life dementia risk, whereas a J-shaped association was observed between the late-life CVH score and dementia. In addition, late-life dementia risk was reduced significantly if individuals maintained an ideal level of AHA's CVH guidelines of physical activity, fasting plasma glucose, total cholesterol, and smoking. However, our meta-analysis did not show a significant association between CVH score and global cognitive decline rate. Following AHA's CVH guidelines and maintaining CVH at an optimal level would substantially reduce the late-life dementia risk. More research is required to explore the link between a favorable CVH score and cognitive trajectories among cognitively asymptomatic older populations.
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22. |
- Xia, Xin, et al.
(author)
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From Normal Cognition to Cognitive Impairment and Dementia : Impact of Orthostatic Hypotension.
- 2021
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In: Hypertension. - : Wolters Kluwer. - 0194-911X .- 1524-4563. ; 78:3, s. 769-778
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The role of orthostatic hypotension (OH) in the continuum of cognitive aging remains to be clarified. We sought to investigate the associations of OH with dementia, cognitive impairment, no dementia (CIND), and CIND progression to dementia in older adults while considering orthostatic symptoms. This population-based cohort study included 2532 baseline (2001–2004) dementia-free participants (age ≥60 years; 62.6% women) in the SNAC-K (Swedish National Study on Aging and Care in Kungsholmen) who were regularly examined over 12 years. We further divided the participants into a baseline CIND-free cohort and a CIND cohort. OH was defined as a decrease by ≥20/10 mmHg in systolic/diastolic blood pressure upon standing and further divided into asymptomatic and symptomatic OH. Dementia was diagnosed following the international criteria. CIND was defined as scoring ≥1.5 SDs below age group-specific means in ≥1 cognitive domain. Data were analyzed with flexible parametric survival models, controlling for confounding factors. Of the 2532 participants, 615 were defined with OH at baseline, and 322 were diagnosed with dementia during the entire follow-up period. OH was associated with an adjusted hazard ratio of 1.40 for dementia (95% CI, 1.10–1.76), 1.15 (0.94–1.40) for CIND, and 1.54 (1.05–2.25) for CIND progression to dementia. The associations of dementia and CIND progression to dementia with asymptomatic OH were similar to overall OH, whereas symptomatic OH was only associated with CIND progression to dementia. Our study suggests that OH, even asymptomatic OH, is associated with increased risk of dementia and accelerated progression from CIND to dementia in older adults.
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23. |
- Xia, Xinxin, et al.
(author)
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Revealing the crystalline packing structure of Y6 in the active layer of organic solar cells: the critical role of solvent additives
- 2023
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In: Journal of Materials Chemistry A. - : ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY. - 2050-7488 .- 2050-7496. ; 11:40, s. 21895-21907
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The bulk heterojunction (BHJ) morphology of photovoltaic materials is crucial to the fundamental optoelectronic properties of organic solar cells (OSCs). However, in the photoactive layer, the intrinsic crystalline packing structure of Y6, currently the hallmark molecule among Y-series non-fullerene acceptors (NFAs), has not been unambiguously determined. Here, employing grazing-incidence wide-angle X-ray scattering (GIWAXS), we managed to uncover the intrinsic crystalline packing structure of Y6 in the BHJ active layer of OSCs, which is found to be different from its single-crystal structure reported previously. Moreover, we find that solvent additive 1-chloronaphthalene (CN) can induce highly ordered packing of Y6 in BHJ thin films. With the help of atomistic molecular dynamics simulations, it is revealed that pi-pi interactions generally exist between naphthalene derivatives and IC terminals of Y6 analogues, which would essentially improve their long-range ordering. Our work reveals the intrinsic crystalline packing structure of Y6 in the BHJ active layer as well as its crystallization mechanism in thin films, thus providing direct correlations between this crystalline packing and the device characteristics and photophysical properties.
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24. |
- Yan, Xin, et al.
(author)
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Highly efficient ternary solar cells with reduced non-radiative energy loss and enhanced stability via two compatible non-fullerene acceptors
- 2022
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In: Journal of Materials Chemistry A. - : ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY. - 2050-7488 .- 2050-7496. ; 10:29, s. 15605-15613
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- A ternary strategy by introducing a third component into a binary host system has been proven to be a simple and promising method to boost the power conversion efficiency (PCE) and stability of organic solar cells (OSCs). Herein, a high efficient ternary OSC is fabricated, wherein, a non-fullerene acceptor, namely MOIT-M, is introduced as a third component into the PM6:BTP-eC9 blend. MOIT-M possesses good complementary absorption spectra and aligned cascade energy levels with the host binary blend, which benefits light harvesting, exciton dissociation, and charge transport. Moreover, MOIT-M exhibits good miscibility with BTP-eC9, forming a well-mixed phase, which improves molecular packing for better charge transport and optimizes ternary blend morphology. Notably, the incorporation of MOIT-M suppresses non-radiative recombination, leading to reduced non-radiative energy losses (Delta E-nr). As a result, the ternary OSC exhibits a significantly increased PCE of 18.5% with a lower Delta E-nr of 0.21 eV in comparison with the control binary PM6:BTP-eC9 device with a PCE of 17.4% and a Delta E-nr of 0.24 eV. In addition, the ternary OSC displays better storage stability compared to the PM6:BTP-eC9 system. This work indicates that a ternary strategy via combining two compatible small molecule acceptors is effective to simultaneously improve the efficiency and stability of OSCs.
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25. |
- Yang, Ding, et al.
(author)
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High-performance semitransparent organic solar cells enabled by pseudo-planar heterojunction structures combined with optical engineering
- 2022
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In: Journal of Materials Chemistry C. - : ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY. - 2050-7526 .- 2050-7534. ; 10:39, s. 14597-14604
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Semitransparent organic solar cells (ST-OSCs) are emerging as a promising renewable energy technology for building integration. However, how to solve the trade-off between power-conversion efficiency (PCE) and average visible transmittance (AVT) is always the key point for the further development of ST-OSCs. Herein, a pseudo-planar heterojunction (PPHJ) active layer, by sequentially depositing a polymer donor layer (PM6) and a small-molecule acceptor layer (BTP-eC9), was employed to improve the device performance and AVT, resulting in PCEs of 18.5% for opaque devices and 13.3% for semitransparent OSCs with an AVT of 18.5%. Furthermore, by introducing an effective anti-reflective covering layer, the AVT of the ST-OSCs was further improved up to 27.8% with little minus effect on the PCE (13.1%), as well as an impressive light-utilization efficiency (LUE) of 3.64% and a color-rendering index (CRI) of 94.6. It is worth noting that the PCE of 13.1% is the highest value at an AVT of over 25%. Our strategy represents a unique approach for improving the AVT and PCE of ST-OSCs simultaneously, facilitating the commercial development of OSCs.
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26. |
- Yao, Nannan, et al.
(author)
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Efficient Charge Transport Enables High Efficiency in Dilute Donor Organic Solar Cells
- 2021
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In: The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters. - : American Chemical Society. - 1948-7185. ; 12:20, s. 5039-5044
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The donor/acceptor weight ratio is crucial for photovoltaic performance of organic solar cells (OSCs). Here, we systematically investigate the photovoltaic behaviors of PM6:Y6 solar cells with different stoichiometries. It is found that the photovoltaic performance is tolerant to PM6 contents ranging from 10 to 60 wt %. Especially an impressive efficiency over 10% has been achieved in dilute donor solar cells with 10 wt % PM6 enabled by efficient charge generation, electron/ hole transport, slow charge recombination, and field-insensitive extraction. This raises the question about the origin of efficient hole transport in such dilute donor structure. By investigating hole mobilities of PM6 diluted in Y6 and insulators, we find that effective hole transport pathway is mainly through PM6 phase in PM6:Y6 blends despite with low PM6 content. The results indicate that a low fraction of polymer donors combines with near-infrared nonfullerene acceptors could achieve high photovoltaic performance, which might be a candidate for semitransparent windows.
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27. |
- Zhang, Zhiliang, et al.
(author)
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Enhancing intermolecular packing and light harvesting through asymmetric non-fullerene acceptors for achieving 18.7% efficiency ternary organic solar cells
- 2023
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In: Journal of Materials Chemistry A. - : ROYAL SOC CHEMISTRY. - 2050-7488 .- 2050-7496. ; 11:28, s. 15553-15560
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In recent years, the ternary strategy has been proven to be an effective way to improve the performance of organic solar cells (OSCs). Herein, an asymmetric medium-band gap non-fullerene acceptor (AFIC) is synthesized and added as the third component into the PM6:BTP-eC9 binary blend for a highly efficient ternary OSC. AFIC exhibits a well-complementary absorption spectrum with the host binary blend, which benefits light harvesting of the active layer. Furthermore, AFIC shows a large dipole moment and good miscibility with BTP-eC9, which facilitates the formation of a stable well-mixed phase and enhances molecular packing in the blend, leading to improved charge transport and suppressed charge recombination in ternary devices. As a result, the ternary OSC based on PM6:BTP-eC9:AFIC demonstrates a significantly improved power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 18.7% while the binary OSC based on PM6:BTP-eC9 shows a PCE of 17.5%, which is attributed to the synergistic enhancement of the open-circuit voltage (V-oc), short-circuit current density (J(sc)), and fill factor (FF).
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28. |
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- 2019
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)
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