Flexible Broadband Organic Photodetectors with Ternary Planar-Mixed Heterojunction Semiconductors and Solution-Processed Polymeric Electrode.

Flexible organic photodetectors (OPDs) hold immense promise in health monitoring sensors, flexible imaging sensors, and portable optical communication. Nevertheless, the actualization of high-performance flexible electronics has been hindered by rigid electrodes such as metals or metal oxides. In this work, we constructed a flexible broadband organic photodetector using a solution-processed polymeric electrode, which exhibits flexibility surpassing that of conventional indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes. Additionally, we employed a planar-mixed heterojunction (PMHJ) through a sequential deposition method and introduced PC71BM as the third constituent into the PM6/Y6 binary active layer, resulting in enhanced photodetection performance and a broadend spectral range. The optimized OPDs demonstrated remarkable detectivity (D*) exceeding 1012 Jones in brodband from 300 to 900 nm, with a champion D* of 6.31 × 1012 Jones at 790 nm. Furthermore, after undergoing 500 cycles of bending, the D* retained approximately 78% of its original performance, highlighting the outstanding mechanical stability. This work presents a promising pathway toward the development of flexible broadband OPDs using a straightforward method, offering enhanced compatibility in diverse application scenarios and propelling the frontier of flexible optoelectronic research.

Solution-Processable NiOx:PMMA Hole Transport Layer for Efficient and Stable Inverted Organic Solar Cells.

For organic solar cells (OSCs), nickel oxide (NiOx) is a potential candidate as the hole transport layer (HTL) material. However, due to the interfacial wettability mismatch, developing solution-based fabrication methods of the NiOx HTL is challenging for OSCs with inverted device structures. In this work, by using N, N-dimethylformamide (DMF) to dissolve poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), the polymer is successfully incorporated into the NiOx nanoparticle (NP) dispersions to modify the solution-processable HTL of the inverted OSCs. Benefiting from the improvements of electrical and surface properties, the inverted PM6:Y6 OSCs based on the PMMA-doped NiOx NP HTL achieves an enhanced power conversion efficiency of 15.11% as well as improved performance stability in ambient conditions. The results demonstrated a viable approach to realize efficient and stable inverted OSCs by tuning the solution-processable HTL.

High Performance and Stable Organic Solar Cells Fabricated by Y-Series Small Molecular Materials as the Interfacial Modified Layer.

The organic solar cell (OSC) has received tremendous consideration for the impressive increased power conversion efficiency (PCE) from 11% to over 18% in the last decade, but another main parameter, the stability, still needs further study to meet the requirements of commercialization. Generally, the inverted structure device shows more stability than the conventional one owing to the structure characteristics, but even so, the performance and stability of the OSC device still need further improvement because of some undesirable contact between the electron transport layer (typically transition metal oxide like ZnO) and the active layer. Here, three Y-series small molecular acceptor materials (Y6, BTP-eC9, and L8-BO) are used as an interfacial modified layer (IML), which could optimize the interfacial characterization of the devices and thus enhance both the performance and stability. As a result, the insertion of the IML improved the interlayer charge transport capacity by passivating the surface of ZnO, leading to the enhancement of short circuit current density (JSC), fill factor, and PCE of the OSCs. Furthermore, because of the protection of the IML, the OSCs show outstanding stability compared to the control device (without IML), which could maintain 80% performance of the device over 150 h.

Additive Modulated Perovskite Microstructures for High Performance Photodetectors.

Organic-inorganic hybrid perovskites have been widely used as light sensitive components for high-efficient photodetectors due to their superior optoelectronic properties. However, the unwanted crystallographic defects of perovskites typically result in high dark current, and thus limit the performance of the device. Herein, we introduce a simple route of microstructures control in MAPbI3 perovskites that associates with introducing an additive of 3,3,4,4-benzophenonetetracarboxylic dianhydridean (BPTCD) for crystallization adjustment of the perovskite film. The BPTCD additive can facilitate the formation of high-quality perovskite film with a compact and nearly pinhole-free morphology. Through characterizing the molecular interactions, it was found that the carbonyl groups in BPTCD is the key reason that promoted the nucleation and crystallization of MAPbI3. As a result, we obtained high-efficient and stable perovskite photodetectors with low dark current of 9.98 × 10-8 A at -0.5 V, an on/off ratio value of 103, and a high detectivity exceeding 1012 Jones over the visible region.

Low dark current and high-performance hybrid perovskite photodetectors with a PBDB-T:IHIC ultrathin passivation layer.

In this Letter, the reduction of undesired high dark current caused by defect states in solution-processed perovskite for photodetectors is realized with the introduction of an ultrathin buffer layer of PBDB-T:IHIC bulk heterojunction (BHJ). By controlling the concentration of BHJ precisely during a solution process, a low dark current density (Jd) of 1.01×10-4mA/cm2 and a high specific detectivity (D∗) of 2.61×1012Jones were achieved. It was found that low Jd is attributed to the passivation effect of BHJ on defect states, where BHJ acts as a Lewis base and interacts with unbonded Pb2+ in perovskite. This Letter demonstrates that the application of ultrathin organic BHJ has significant potential for the manufacturing of high-performance optoelectronic devices.

High-Performance Organic Photodetectors by Introducing a Non-Fullerene Acceptor to Broaden Long Wavelength Detective Spectrum.

We demonstrate the broadband visible organic photodetectors (OPDs) by introducing a non-fullerene acceptor of 3,9-bis(2-methylene-(3-(1,1dicyanomethylene)-indanone))-5,5,11,11-tetrakis(4-hexylphenyl)-dithieno[2,3d:2,3'-d']-s-indaceno[1,2-b:5,6-b']dithiophene (ITIC) into the bulk heterojunction (BHJ) based on a conventional system of poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT):[6,6]-phenyl C71-butyric acid methyl ester (PC71BM) .The resultant OPDs exhibit a specific detectivity beyond 1012 Jones in the whole visible region ranged from 380 nm to 760 nm, and the highest detectivity reaches 2.67 × 1012 Jones at 710 nm. UV-Vis absorption spectrum, steady-state photoluminescence, atomic force microscopy, and space-charge-limited current property were applied to analyze the film characteristics of obtained OPDs. Owing to the long-wavelength absorption band of ITIC, the spectral photodetection range has been broadened effectively, and better film morphology, more effective energy transfer, and the reduced electron mobility in the active layer are responsible for the excellent photodetection capability. The proposed scheme provides a reliable strategy for implementing high-performance broadband visible OPDs.

Pharmacological characterization of INCB3344, a small molecule antagonist of human CCR2.

The chemokine receptor 2 (CCR2) directs migration of monocytes and has been proposed to be a drug target for chronic inflammatory diseases. INCB3344 was first published as a small molecule nanomolar inhibitor of rodent CCR2. Here, we show that INCB3344 can also bind human CCR2 (hCCR2) with high affinity, having a dissociation constant (K(d)) of approximately 5nM. The binding of the compound to the receptor is rapid and reversible. INCB3344 potently inhibits hCCR2 binding of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) and MCP-1-induced signaling and function in hCCR2-expressing cells, including ERK phosphorylation and chemotaxis, and is competitive against MCP-1 in vitro. INCB3344 also blocks MCP-1 binding to monocytes in human whole blood, with potency consistent with in vitro studies. The whole blood binding assay described here can be used for monitoring pharmacodynamic activity of CCR2 antagonists in both preclinical models and in the clinic.

Selective inhibition of ADAM metalloproteases as a novel approach for modulating ErbB pathways in cancer.

PURPOSE: ErbB receptor signaling pathways are important regulators of cell fate, and their dysregulation, through (epi)genetic alterations, plays an etiologic role in multiple cancers. ErbB ligands are synthesized as membrane-bound precursors that are cleaved by members of the ADAM family of zinc-dependent metalloproteases. This processing, termed ectodomain shedding, is essential for the functional activation of ErbB ligands. Recent studies suggest that elevated levels of ErbB ligands may circumvent the effectiveness of ErbB-targeted therapeutics. Here, we describe the discovery and preclinical development of potent, selective inhibitors of ErbB ligand shedding. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: A series of biochemical and cell-based assays were established to identify selective inhibitors of ErbB ligand shedding. The therapeutic potential of these compounds was assessed in multiple in vivo models of cancer and matrix metalloprotease-related toxicity. RESULTS: INCB3619 was identified as a representative selective, potent, orally bioavailable small-molecule inhibitor of a subset of ADAM proteases that block shedding of ErbB ligands. Administration of INCB3619 to tumor-bearing mice reduced ErbB ligand shedding in vivo and inhibited ErbB pathway signaling (e.g., phosphorylation of Akt), tumor cell proliferation, and survival. Further, INCB3619 synergized with clinically relevant cancer therapeutics and showed no overt or compounding toxicities, including fibroplasia, the dose-limiting toxicity associated with broad-spectrum matrix metalloprotease inhibitors. CONCLUSIONS: Inhibition of ErbB ligand shedding offers a potentially novel and well-tolerated therapeutic strategy for the treatment of human cancers and is currently being evaluated in the clinic.