Polytellurophenes are an emerging class of semiconducting polymers showing promises in organic electronics. However, their commercial potentials are still held back by the synthetic scale. In this collaborative efforts with 1-materials, we aim to develop a synthetic strategy to produce polytellurophenes from a laboratory scale to a pilot scale to meet the increasing market demands. The synthesis will be scale up to produce 500 mg and 2.5 g polytellurophenes in one single batch at Stage 1 and Stage 2, respectively.

Solar cells which convert solar energy directly into electricity are among one of the most viable solutions to the world’s foreseeable energy crisis and global environmental issues. One key strategy to improve the efficiency of solar cells is to enhance the overlap between their absorption spectra and the solar spectrum. When two or more subcells with distinct and complementary absorption spectra are stacked, the tandem solar cells are created and a broader range of the solar spectrum can be absorbed and more solar energy can be harvested.