p-Type polymer-hybridized high-performance piezoelectric nanogenerators.

Journal article

Enhancing the output power of a nanogenerator is essential in applications as a sustainable power source for wireless sensors and microelectronics. We report here a novel approach that greatly enhances piezoelectric power generation by introducing a p-type polymer layer on a piezoelectric semiconducting thin film. Holes at the film surface greatly reduce the piezoelectric potential screening effect caused by free electrons in a piezoelectric semiconducting material. Furthermore, additional carriers from a conducting polymer and a shift in the Fermi level help in increasing the power output. Poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) was used as a p-type polymer on piezoelectric semiconducting zinc oxide (ZnO) thin film, and phenyl-C(61)-butyric acid methyl ester (PCBM) was added to P3HT to improve carrier transport. The ZnO/P3HT:PCBM-assembled piezoelectric power generator demonstrated 18-fold enhancement in the output voltage and tripled the current, relative to a power generator with ZnO only at a strain of 0.068%. The overall output power density exceeded 0.88 W/cm(3), and the average power conversion efficiency was up to 18%. This high power generation enabled red, green, and blue light-emitting diodes to turn on after only tens of times bending the generator. This approach offers a breakthrough in realizing a high-performance flexible piezoelectric energy harvester for self-powered electronics.

Authors: Lee, K; Kumar, B; Seo, J; Kim, K; Sohn, J

• Publication status: Published
• Journal: Nano letters
• Volume: 12
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 1959-1964
• Publication date: 2012-04-01
• DOI: 10.1021/nl204440g
• EISSN: 1530-6992
• ISSN: 1530-6984
• Language: English
• Keywords: Zinc Oxide; Nanotechnology; Thiophenes; Semiconductors; Porosity; Fullerenes; Time Factors; Surface Properties; Membranes, Artificial; Electric Power Supplies