Simulating exciton dynamics in organic semiconductors

Thesis: Ph. D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Chemistry, 2019

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Lee, Chee Kong,Ph. D.Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Other Authors: Adam P. Willard.
Format: Thesis
Language:eng
Published: Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2019
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/121782
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author Lee, Chee Kong,Ph. D.Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
author2 Adam P. Willard.
author_facet Adam P. Willard.
Lee, Chee Kong,Ph. D.Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
author_sort Lee, Chee Kong,Ph. D.Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
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description Thesis: Ph. D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Chemistry, 2019
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spelling mit-1721.1/1217822019-09-14T03:08:23Z Simulating exciton dynamics in organic semiconductors Lee, Chee Kong,Ph. D.Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Adam P. Willard. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemistry. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Chemistry Chemistry. Thesis: Ph. D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Chemistry, 2019 Cataloged from PDF version of thesis. Includes bibliographical references (pages 105-116). Organic semiconductors are carbon-based semiconductors with number of unique benefits over traditional semiconductors such as low production costs, versatile synthesis processes, and high portability. Unlike traditional crystalline semiconductors that exhibit high level of homogeneity, organic semiconductors are spatially and temporally heterogeneous due to the weak van der Waals intermolecular forces. In this thesis we utilize computational and theoretical methods to investigate how this heterogeneity affects the electronic properties in organic semiconductors. In particular, we focus on two microscopic processes fundamental to the performance of organic semiconductors: the transport of Frenkel exciton and dissociation of charge-transfer (CT) exciton. Frenkel excitons are tightly bound electron-hole pairs created upon photo-excitation of molecules and they carry the excess energy imparted by photons. We employ theoretical approach that combines molecular dynamics and semi-empirical electronic structure calculations to reveal the effects of molecular disorder on Frenkel exciton transport in oligothiophene-based molecular semiconductors. Using this approach, we find that the magnitude and details of molecular disorder (i.e. spatial and temporal correlations) could have huge impact on exciton transport in this class of materials. CT excitons are electron-hole pairs partially separated across the donor-acceptor interface. To generate free charges, the oppositely charged electron and hole must overcome an electrostatic binding energy before they undergo ground state recombination. We explore the CT exciton dissociate mechanism and magnetic field effects through a model of quantum spin dynamics combined with a stochastic coarse-grained model of charge transport. We demonstrate that simulations carried out on our model are capable of reproducing experimental results as well as generating theoretical predictions related to the efficiency of organic electronic materials. Next, we consider the effect of disorder in electronic energy levels on dissociation yield and demonstrate that it is maximized with a finite amount of disorder as a result of non-equilibrium effect. by Chee Kong Lee. Ph. D. Ph.D. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Chemistry 2019-07-18T20:28:32Z 2019-07-18T20:28:32Z 2019 2019 Thesis https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/121782 1103440185 eng MIT theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed, downloaded, or printed from this source but further reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582 116 pages application/pdf Massachusetts Institute of Technology
spellingShingle Chemistry.
Lee, Chee Kong,Ph. D.Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Simulating exciton dynamics in organic semiconductors
title Simulating exciton dynamics in organic semiconductors
title_full Simulating exciton dynamics in organic semiconductors
title_fullStr Simulating exciton dynamics in organic semiconductors
title_full_unstemmed Simulating exciton dynamics in organic semiconductors
title_short Simulating exciton dynamics in organic semiconductors
title_sort simulating exciton dynamics in organic semiconductors
topic Chemistry.
url https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/121782
work_keys_str_mv AT leecheekongphdmassachusettsinstituteoftechnology simulatingexcitondynamicsinorganicsemiconductors