Controlling absorption enhancement in organic photovoltaic cells by patterning Au nano disks within the active layer

We show experimentally and theoretically enhancement of external quantum efficiency in the green-NIR spectrum for organic photovoltaic device, by the incorporation of patterned Au nano-disk arrays that extend from the front electrode into the active layer. Enhancement mechanisms and design rules are extracted by comprehensive simulations which match the experimental findings. The enhanced efficiency is shown to stem from field enhancement originating from both localized plasmonic resonances and periodic nano patch antennas configuration.