Innovative textile-based washable polymer solar cells are realized by suppressing the hydrolysis of the encapsulation barrier with a SiO ₂ –polymer composite.

Prolonged exposure to fine dust (FD) increases the risk of skin inflammation. Stimulated epidermal cells release growth factors into their extracellular environment, which can induce inflammation in dermal cells. Algae are considered rich sources of bioactive materials. The present study emphasized the effect of low-molecular-weight fucoidan isolated from Sargassum confusum (LMF) against FD-induced inflammation in HaCaT keratinocytes and underneath fibroblasts (HDFs) in an integrated culture model. HDFs were treated with media from FD-stimulated HaCaT with LMF treatments (preconditioned media). The results suggested that FD increased the oxidative stress in HaCaT, thereby increasing the sub-G₁ phase of the cell cycle up to 587%, as revealed via flow cytometric analysis. With preconditioned media, HDFs also displayed oxidative stress; however, the increase in the sub-G₁ phase was insignificant compared with HaCaT. LMF dose-dependently regulated the NF-κB/MAPK signaling in HaCaT. Furthermore, significant downregulation in NF-κB/MAPK signaling, as well as inflammatory cytokines, tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases, matrix metalloproteinases, and reduction in relative elastase and collagenase activities related to the extracellular matrix degeneration were observed in HDFs with a preconditioned media treatment. Therefore, we concluded that HDFs were protected from inflammation by preconditioned media. Continued research on tissue culture and in vivo studies may reveal the therapeutic potential of LMF.

In spite of the many favorable characteristics of polymer solar cells (PSCs), the critical issue of their relatively low efficiency stemming from a low carrier mobility and short exciton diffusion length is still a main hurdle for full commercialization. Herein we present a simple route to improve the efficiency of PSCs by exploiting plasmonically assisted photon recycling. With embedded gold nanorods (AuNRs) in the hole injection layer of PSCs, photon radiation from excitons is promoted via localized surface plasmons resonating at the band-edge energy of the active material, and hence photon recycling is enhanced. While this enhancement of photon recycling causes a slight increase of the open-circuit voltage as expected from previous studies, surprisingly it also provokes a substantial improvement of the short-circuit current without additional photon absorption. This exceptional improvement of the photocurrent in PSCs seems to be due to the effect of the photon recycling on extending the effective diffusion length of excitons. Together with another gain of electrical ohmic loss reduction, introducing AuNRs boosts the power conversion efficiency by ∼11.4% and ∼11.7% for devices with wide and narrow bandgap materials, respectively. Details of the experimental characterization of various devices provide evidence for the elucidation of the photon recycling effects in PSCs.

Despite the many promising properties of perovskite solar cells (PSCs), ultraviolet (UV)‐induced degradation remains a critical issue for their long‐term reliability. One potential solution is the selective inhibition of UV exposure before it reaches the PSCs; however, this approach leads to a reduction in PSC efficiency due to limited photon utilization. In this regard, here a universally applicable method is presented to address the UV stability issue of PSCs without compromising their high‐level efficiency while also providing device flexibility. A UV‐absorbing colorless polyimide (CPI) substrate serves as a flexible protective shield against UV illumination. The photocurrent loss in CPI‐based PSCs is mitigated by a nanostructured photonic sticker that incorporates a UV‐to‐visible downshifting medium, which can be easily integrated with the fabricated PSC substrate. Through the combined effects of downshifting and synergistic light trapping, the efficiency of UV‐resistant CPI‐based PSCs is improved from 18.6% to 20.4%, making it comparable to the performance of UV‐damageable glass‐based PSCs. Together with numerical modeling, various experimental characterizations of optical and photovoltaic properties, as well as stability assessments under UV, bending, and off‐normal incidence conditions, provide insights into the underlying physical phenomena and optimal design considerations for successful application.