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Organic Solar Cells - Theory and Practice

Organic Solar Cells - Theory and Practice

Instructor: Jens Wenzel Andreasen

74,375 already enrolled

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6 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

1,238 reviews

2 weeks to complete

at 10 hours a week

Flexible schedule

Learn at your own pace

93%

Most learners liked this course

6 modules

Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.

1,238 reviews

2 weeks to complete

at 10 hours a week

Flexible schedule

Learn at your own pace

93%

Most learners liked this course

Skills you'll gain

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Assessments

14 assignments

Taught in English

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There are 6 modules in this course

The goal of the course is to give students awareness of the largest alternative form of energy and how organic / polymer solar cells can harvest this energy. The course provides an insight into the theory behind organic solar cells and describes the three main research areas within the field i.e. materials, stability and processing.

By the end of the module we have set the following goals for you: -You should have gained knowledge on solar cells, and their place as a renewable energy -Be able to distinguish between different solar cell technologies -Describe the difference between the three generations of solar cells -Identify the four steps of life cycle analysis -Determine differences between embedded energy, energy return factor, and energy payback time.

What's included

7 videos9 readings3 assignments

7 videos Total 52 minutes

The Instructors 2 minutes
Introduction 10 minutes
3 Generations of Solar Cells 12 minutes
Tutorial - Introduction 2 minutes
Tutorial - Terms and Abbreviations 10 minutes
Life Cycle Analysis - Part I 9 minutes
Life Cycle Analysis - Part II 7 minutes

9 readings Total 81 minutes

Welcome 1 minute
Terms and abbreviations 10 minutes
Solar energy 10 minutes
Solar cells 10 minutes
Solar cells - the three generations 10 minutes
Life cycle analysis 10 minutes
Comparison of OPV with other technologies 10 minutes
Environmental impacts of OPV 10 minutes
Interpreting the results for OPV 10 minutes

3 assignments Total 90 minutes

Solar cells 30 minutes
Getting to Know the OPV Jargon 30 minutes
LCA 30 minutes

By the end of this module you should: -Be able to identify the different steps in the theory behind the solar cells -Be able to measure the efficiency of a solar cell -Be able to describe the different layers in the solar cell and understand their function -Be ready to argue for different applications of the solar cells.

What's included

6 videos8 readings2 assignments

6 videos Total 85 minutes

OPV Working Principles 7 minutes
How to Characterize Solar Cells 4 minutes
Tutorial - IV Curves 7 minutes
Layers in the Solar Cell 7 minutes
Applications 4 minutes
Recorded Live Session I 56 minutes

8 readings Total 80 minutes

Polymer solar cells 10 minutes
Why polymer solar cells 10 minutes
How to messure solar cells 10 minutes
Incident photon-to-current efficiency (IPCE) 10 minutes
How do polymer solar cells work 10 minutes
The layer stack 10 minutes
Tandem Solar Cells 10 minutes
Suggested Materials 10 minutes

2 assignments Total 60 minutes

Determine Solar Cell Parameters 30 minutes
Working Principles 30 minutes

By the end of this module you should: -Know why we need conjugated polymers and side chains -Know about low band gap polymers -Be able to identify the most common polymerization methods -Be familiar with common characterization techniques used with the materials -Know about acceptor materials used in the active layer of organic solar cells.

What's included

6 videos10 readings3 assignments

6 videos Total 103 minutes

Materials in the Active Layer 9 minutes
Polymers 7 minutes
Synthesis 7 minutes
Characterization of Polymers 7 minutes
Examples from Literature 6 minutes
Recorded Live Session II 65 minutes

10 readings Total 100 minutes

Conjugated polymers 10 minutes
Side chains 10 minutes
Important materials 10 minutes
Suggested Materials 10 minutes
Polymer synthesis 10 minutes
Purification 10 minutes
UV-vis spectroscopy 10 minutes
Electrochemical measurements 10 minutes
Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) 10 minutes
Size exclusion chromatography 10 minutes

3 assignments Total 90 minutes

Materials 30 minutes
Polymerization 30 minutes
Characterization 30 minutes

By the end of this module you should: -Be able to identify different kinds of degradation behaviours -Know about decay curves, including concepts such as burn-in and T80 -Distinguish between different ISOS standards.

What's included

7 videos9 readings3 assignments

7 videos Total 107 minutes

Stability and Degradation - Introduction 8 minutes
Decay Curves 6 minutes
ISOS Standards 12 minutes
Stability Examples 7 minutes
Morphological Stability 4 minutes
Electrical Defects 9 minutes
Recorded Live Session III 61 minutes

9 readings Total 90 minutes

Degradation and stability 10 minutes
Morphological stability 10 minutes
Suggested Materials 10 minutes
Suggested Materials 10 minutes
ISOS standards 10 minutes
Morphological stability 10 minutes
Flexibility and delamination 10 minutes
Polymer stability 10 minutes
LBIC 10 minutes

3 assignments Total 90 minutes

Decay Curves 30 minutes
ISOS 30 minutes
Stability and Degradation 30 minutes

By the end of this module you will be able to: -Describe the lab scale techniques and the pros and cons -Describe the difference between coating and printing -Identify the different coating and printing techniques.

What's included

7 videos12 readings2 assignments

7 videos Total 103 minutes

Coating - Part I 10 minutes
Coating - Part II 5 minutes
Printing - Part I 6 minutes
Printing - Part II 14 minutes
Upscaling 13 minutes
Testing and Encapsulation 8 minutes
Recorded Live Session IV 47 minutes

12 readings Total 120 minutes

Spin coating 10 minutes
Blade coating 10 minutes
Spray coating 10 minutes
Slot die coating 10 minutes
Screen printing 10 minutes
Flexographic printing 10 minutes
Gravure printing 10 minutes
Inkjet 10 minutes
Lab scale fabrication 10 minutes
Roll-to-roll (R2R) manufacturing 10 minutes
Inks 10 minutes
Suggested Materials 10 minutes

2 assignments Total 42 minutes

Coating 30 minutes
Printing 12 minutes

This is the final module of the course and it is almost time to sit back and congratulate yourself! You just have two more videos and an exam to complete.

What's included

3 videos1 reading1 assignment

Instructor

Instructor ratings

(156 ratings)

Jens Wenzel Andreasen

Technical University of Denmark (DTU)

3 Courses 139,943 learners

Offered by

Technical University of Denmark (DTU)

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Reviewed on Oct 18, 2015

Great course, lots of material but really well presented. Touches all aspects of the organic solar cell production and the physical and chemical fundamentals behind it.

Reviewed on Oct 20, 2017

This is very good course, thanks to DTU and Instructors, I recommend it for everybody.Can You please add a discussion Forum to this courseThanks in advance.

Reviewed on Aug 1, 2020

Teachers explained amazingly and it was a very interesting course and may be beginning of my research career. thank you so much coursera atleast now i have a direction.Longing to learn a lot more.

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Frequently asked questions

Organic Solar Cells - Theory and Practice is a specialized course on organic solar cells. If you are looking for a more general course we can strongly recommend Introduction to solar cells (https://www.coursera.org/learn/solar-cells). as an alternative

To access the course materials, assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience when you enroll in a course. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid. The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.

When you purchase a Certificate you get access to all course materials, including graded assignments. Upon completing the course, your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile.