Poly(dimethylsiloxane)-block-PM6 Polymer Donors for High-Performance and Mechanically Robust Polymer Solar Cells.

High power conversion efficiency (PCE) and stretchability are the dual requirements for the wearable application of polymer solar cells (PSCs). However, most efficient photoactive films are mechanically brittle. In this work, highly efficient (PCE = 18%) and mechanically robust (crack-onset strain (COS) = 18%) PSCs are acheived by designing block copolymer (BCP) donors, PM6-b-PDMSx (x = 5k, 12k, and 19k). In these BCP donors, stretchable poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) blocks are covalently linked with the PM6 blocks to effectively increase the stretchability. The stretchability of the BCP donors increases with a longer PDMS block, and PM6-b-PDMS :L8-BO PSC exhibits a high PCE (18%) and 9-times higher COS value (18%) compared to that (COS = 2%) of the PM6:L8-BO-based PSC. However, the PM6:L8-BO:PDMS ternary blend shows inferior PCE (5%) and COS (1%) due to the macrophase separation between PDMS and active components. In the intrinsically stretchable PSC, the PM6-b-PDMS :L8-BO blend exhibits significantly greater mechanical stability PCE ((80% of the initial PCE) at 36% strain) than those of the PM6:L8-BO blend (PCE at 12% strain) and the PM6:L8-BO:PDMS ternary blend (PCE at 4% strain). This study suggests an effective design strategy of BCP P to achieve stretchable and efficient PSCs.