Integrated solar-rechargeable supercapacitors with a dual-functional-layered electrode

Early integrated solar-rechargeable supercapacitor (ISRS) systems with four physically distinguishable electrodes are cumbersome and require multistep manufacturing process with application disadvantages. Therefore, a stacked ISRS with a three-electrode mode that uses a dual-functional-layered (shared) electrode, which is particularly important to integrate two main active components, is one of the target configurations for a compact, safe and efficient power supplier in advanced soft electronics. This work reports the effect of various fabrication methods on the surface morphology profile of a graphene oxide-incorporated poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) (m-PHGO) as a shared electrode; this process exhibited a significant impact on the charge/discharge rate and ISRS efficiency. By controlling the deposition method, the shared electrode fabricated by a modified spin/spray-coating technique using an m-PHGO dispersion features an interface that meets all of the requirements of a dual-functional layer. It is effective for hole charge filtration, transfer, and storage in the stacked ISRS. Under 1-sun illumination, the supercapacitor moiety is charged entirely by the organic solar cell unit within 5 s to build a fusion ISRS capable of approaching a high charging voltage of ∼0.6 V. The as-developed ISRS (with a thickness of ∼2.6 μm and the substrate) shows an impressive energy-storage efficiency of ∼81%. This study provides insights about fabricating high-performance and easy-to-use compact electronic devices.