An Azulene-Containing Low Bandgap Small Molecule for Organic Photovoltaics with High Open-Circuit Voltage.

A simple azulene-containing squaraine dye (AzUSQ) showing bandgap of 1.38 eV and hole mobility up to 1.25×10(-4)  cm(2)  V(-1)  s(-1) was synthesized. With its low bandgap, an organic photovoltaic (OPV) device based on it has been made that exhibits an impressive open-circuit voltages (Voc ) of 0.80 V. Hence, azulene might be a promising structural unit to construct OPV materials with simultaneous low bandgap, high hole mobility and high Voc .