p-Type metal-oxide hole transport layer (HTL) suppresses recombination at the anode and hence improves the organic photovoltaic (OPV) device performance. While NiOx has been shown to exhibit good HTL performance, very thin films (<10 nm) are needed due to its poor conductivity and high absorption. To overcome these limitations, we utilize CuGaO2, a p-type transparent conducting oxide, as HTL for OPV devices. Pure delafossite phase CuGaO2 nanoplates are synthesized via microwave-assisted hydrothermal reaction in a significantly shorter reaction time compared to via conventional heating. A thick CuGaO2 HTL (∼280 nm) in poly(3-hexylthiophene):[6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid methyl ester (P3HT:PCBM) devices achieves 3.2% power conversion efficiency, on par with devices made with standard HTL materials. Such a thick CuGaO2 HTL is more compatible with large-area and high-volume printing process.
Keywords: delafossite; interfacial contact layers; metal oxide nanostructures; microwave-assisted reaction; organic solar cells; p-type transparent conducting oxides; solution processing.