Low-energy Ar+-ion beam induced endotaxial plasmonic Ag nanoparticles in PEDOT:PSS thin-films

Abstract The incorporation of metallic nanostructures into the active layers of oligomer solar cells is the most promising light trapping approach. The size and relative arrangement of nanostructures are the key factors for enhanced light trapping. The present letter reports the formation of plasmonic silver (Ag)-nanoparticles using low-energy 150 keV argon ( Ar + )-beam irradiated Indium-tin-oxide (ITO)/Poly3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene:Poly-styrenesulfonate (PEDOT:PSS)/Ag thin-film system for solar cell application. The multilayer oligomer and Ag thin-films were deposited on ITO using spin-coating and e - -beam evaporation system, respectively. X-ray diffraction measurement shows the change in the crystalline nature of irradiated films and the optical studies performed using ultraviolet–visible, diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and microscopy exhibit 30% enhancement in the light trapping corresponding to the visible region of the solar spectrum. The significant decrease in the optical-band-gap confirms the formation of endotaxial plasmonic Ag nanostructures in the polymer/ITO substrate.