Charge localization effects and transport in dendritic nanostructures for photovoltaic applications

Highlights: • Charge localization and transport are investigated in dendritic interfaces (DIs). • Several types of DIs are modeled by diffusion limited aggregation type processes. • A coherent scattering formalism is employed to investigate the charge localization effects and transfer characteristics. • The results indicate correlations between the surface area of the DIs and transmission functions. • The approach provides a general framework for the characterization and optimization of DIs as part of open quantum systems. - Abstract: Charge localization effects and transport properties in dendritic interfaces are investigated in the framework of a coherent scattering formalism. Due to the large surface area, tree shaped interfaces enhance the overall efficiency of bulk heterojunction photovoltaic applications. The charge localization effects are analyzed for different tree shapes, band offset potentials and in the context of varying the thickness of the tree branches. Two types of localization are pointed out – on the tree branches or inbetween. The transfer characteristics are influenced by the band offsets and the energy of the charged particles. A detailed statistical analysis shows the correlation between the average transmission function and the surface area of the dendritic interface. The current study provides a framework for the characterization and optimization of dendritic interfaces.