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Abstract Organic solar cells (OSCs) are considered as a crucial energy source for flexible and wearable electronics. Pseudo-planar heterojunction (PPHJ) OSCs simplify the solution preparation and morphology control. However, non-halogenated solvent-printed PPHJ often have an undesirable vertical component distribution and insufficient donor/acceptor interfaces. Additionally, the inherent brittleness of non-fullerene small molecule acceptors (NFSMAs) in PPHJ leads to poor flexibility, and the NFSMAs solution shows inadequate viscosity during the printing of acceptor layer. Herein, we propose a novel approach termed polymer-incorporated pseudo-planar heterojunction (PiPPHJ), wherein a small amount of polymer donor is introduced into the NFSMAs layer. Our findings demonstrate that the incorporation of polymer increases the viscosity of acceptor solution, thereby improving the blade-coating processability and overall film quality. Simultaneously, this strategy effectively modulates the vertical component distribution, resulting in more donor/acceptor interfaces and an improved power conversion efficiency of 17.26%. Furthermore, PiPPHJ-based films exhibit superior tensile properties, with a crack onset strain of 12.0%, surpassing PPHJ-based films (9.6%). Consequently, large-area (1 cm2) flexible devices achieve a considerable efficiency of 13.30% and maintain excellent mechanical flexibility with 82% of the initial efficiency after 1000 bending cycles. These findings underscore the significant potential of PiPPHJ-based OSCs in flexible and wearable electronics.

Abstract In this study, a novel wide‐bandgap small molecule guest material, ITOA, designed and synthesized for fabricating efficient ternary organic solar cells (OSCs) ITOA complements the absorbance of the PM6:Y6 binary system, exhibiting strong crystallinity and modest miscibility. ITOA optimizes the morphology by promoting intensive molecular packing, reducing domain size, and establishing a preferred vertical phase distribution. These features contribute to improved and well‐balanced charge transport, suppressed carrier recombination, and efficient exciton dissociation. Consequently, a significantly enhanced efficiency of 18.62% for the ternary device is achieved, accompanied by increased short‐circuit current density (JSC), fill factor (FF), and open‐circuit voltage (VOC). Building on this success, replacing Y6 with BTP‐eC9 leads to an outstanding PCE of 19.33% for the ternary OSCs. Notably, the introduction of ITOA expedites the formation of the optimized morphology, resulting in an impressive PCE of 18.04% for the ternary device without any postprocessing. Moreover, the ternary device exhibits enhanced operational stability under maximum power point (MPP) tracking. This comprehensive study demonstrates that a rationally designed guest molecule can optimize morphology, reduce energy loss, and streamline the fabrication process, essential for achieving high efficiency and stability in OSCs, paving the way for practical commercial applications.

The poly3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) hole transport layer (HTL) has always played a crucial role in achieving high-efficiency organic solar cells (OSCs) owing to its unique advantages of suitable energy levels and high optical transparency. However, the inherent insulation and easy aggregation property of PSS results in relatively low conductivity and high surface roughness of the PEDOT:PSS film, which is unfavorable for charge transport and the morphology of the top layer. To address these problems, we use PEDOT:PSS diluted in a series of alcoholic solvents and evaluate them on the PM6:Y6 system. Among these, the PM6:Y6 devices using PEDOT:PSS modified with ethanol as the HTL demonstrate the best vertical phase segregation and carrier extraction. In addition, the PEDOT:PSS film with added ethanol also has the smoothest surface compared to those diluted in the other alcoholic solvents. Finally, a high power conversion efficiency of 18.13% was obtained with the PM6:Y6 devices based on PEDOT:PSS modified by ethanol. This work provides a sufficient reference for the alcoholic modification of PEDOT:PSS and also proposes a feasible solution for high-efficiency OSCs.

Abstract Organic solar cells (OSCs) have demonstrated over 19% power conversion efficiency (PCE) with the help of material innovation and device optimization. Co‐working with newly designed materials, traditional solvent additives, 1‐chloronaphthalene (CN), and 1,8‐diodooctane (DIO) are still powerful in morphology modulation towards satisfying efficiencies. Here, we chose recently reported high‐performance polymer donors (PM6 & D18‐Fu) and small molecular acceptors (Y6 & L8‐BO) as active layer materials and processed them by different conditions (CN or DIO or none). Based on corresponding 12 groups of device results, and their film morphology characterizations (both ex‐situ and in‐situ ones), the property‐performance relationships are revealed case by case. It is thereby supposed to be taken as a successful attempt to demonstrate the importance and complexity of donor‐acceptor‐additive interaction, since the device performance and physics analyses are also tightly combined with morphology variation. Furthermore, ternary blend construction for PCE improvement provides an approaching 19% level and showcases the potential of understanding‐guided‐optimization (UGO) in the future of OSCs.

BackgroundPrevious studies have suggested that the gut microbiota (GM) is closely associated with the development of autoimmune cholestatic liver disease (ACLD), but limitations, such as the presence of confounding factors, have resulted in a causal relationship between the gut microbiota and autoimmune cholestatic liver disease that remains uncertain. Thus, we used two-sample Mendelian randomization as a research method to explore the causal relationship between the two.MethodsPooled statistics of gut microbiota from a meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies conducted by the MiBioGen consortium were used as an instrumental variable for exposure factors. The Pooled statistics for primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) were obtained from the R9 version of the FinnGen database (https://r9.finngen.fi/). Inverse-variance Weighted (IVW), cML-MA, MR-Egger regression, Weighted median (WME), Weighted mode (WM), and Simple mode (SM) were used to detect the association between intestinal flora and the causal relationship between intestinal flora and ACLD, in which IVW method was dominant, was assessed based on the effect indicator dominance ratio (odds ratio, OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI). Sensitivity analysis, heterogeneity test, gene pleiotropy test, MR pleiotropy residual sum and outlier test (MR-PRESSO) were combined to verify the stability and reliability of the results. Reverse Mendelian randomization analysis was performed on gut microbiota and found to be causally associated with ACLD.ResultsThe IVW results showed that the relative abundance of the genus Clostridium innocuum group, genus Butyricicoccus, and genus Erysipelatoclostridium was negatively correlated with the risk of PBC, that is, increased abundance reduced the risk of PBC and was a protective, and the relative abundance of the genus Eubacterium hallii was positively correlated with the risk of PSC, which is a risk factor for PSC. Family Clostridiaceae1 and family Lachnospiraceae were negatively correlated with the risk of PSC, which is a protective factor for PSC.ConclusionThis study found a causal relationship between gut microbiota and ACLD. This may provide valuable insights into gut microbiota-mediated pathogenesis of ACLD. It is necessary to conduct a large-sample randomized controlled trial (RCT) at a later stage to validate the associated role of the relevant gut microbiota in the risk of ACLD development and to explore the associated mechanisms.

Abstract Organic solar cells (OSCs) have emerged as a promising solution for sustainable energy production, offering advantages such as a low carbon footprint, short energy payback period, and compatibility with eco‐solvents. However, the use of hazardous solvents continues to dominate the best‐performing OSCs, mainly because of the challenges of controlling phase separation and domain crystallinity in eco‐solvents. In this study, we combined the solvent vapor treatment of CS2 and thermal annealing to precisely control the phase separation and domain crystallinity in PM6:M‐Cl and PM6:O‐Cl systems processed with the eco‐solvent o‐xylene. This method resulted in a maximum power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 18.4%, which is among the highest values reported for sustainable binary OSCs. Furthermore, the fabrication techniques were transferred from spin coating in a nitrogen environment to blade printing in ambient air, retaining a PCE of 16.0%, showing its potential for high‐throughput and scalable production. In addition, a comparative analysis of OSCs processed with hazardous and green solvents was conducted to reveal the differences in phase aggregation. This work not only underscores the significance of sustainability in OSCs but also lays the groundwork for unlocking the full potential of open‐air‐printable sustainable OSCs for commercialization.