Light and triboelectrification management by nanostructure coupled with plasma-polymerized-fluorocarbon thin film for enhancing performance of energy harvestings

Abstract

Nanostructures are pivotal in enlarging surface area, increasing transparency, and enhancing power generation. We presented a novel methodology that employs plasma from a linear ion beam source to fabricate irregular nanostructures on a colorless polyimide (CPI) surface. This innovative technique improves transparency, positioning it as an attractive choice for energy and optoelectronic applications. Furthermore, we enhanced the nanostructured CPI surface by applying a plasma-polymerized-fluorocarbon (PPFC). This coating, notable for its low refractive index and superior triboelectrification properties, enabled us to attain ultra-low reflectance (<1%) and a high surface charge density. Integrating PPFC with nanostructured CPI, we amplified the effective surface area of a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) by 14.8%, leading to a boost in TENG performance with outputs reaching 184.0 V and 72.8 μA. We also introduced a figure of merit (FOM) for transparent TENGs. The FOM for PPFC/nanostructured CPI exhibits an impressive value of 206.5. In flexible perovskite solar cells (f-PSCs) incorporating PPFC/nanostructured CPI, we observed an increase in short-circuit current density from 22.61 to 23.24 mA/cm2 and an enhancement in power conversion efficiency from 17.47% to 18.25%. Our results validate the efficacy of this approach in both transparent TENGs and f-PSCs, marking a substantial advancement in their performance.