T.A. Dela Pena is currently a PhD candidate at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) Guangzhou campus in the province of Guangdong, China. He is a recipient of the Guangdong-China Outstanding International Student Award and the HKUST/Guangdong Government Overseas Research Award. He is being supervised by Prof. Jiaying Wu and Prof. He Yan who are former students of Prof. James Durrant and Prof. Tobin J. Marks, respectively. He is also a visiting graduate student researcher at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University under the supervision of Prof. Mingjie Li. In the middle of 2024, he is expected to have a practicum research appointment at the University of New South Wales, School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering, in Sydney Australia under the guidance of Prof. Ashraf Uddin.

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Currently, T.A. Dela Pena is actively participating in research developments for organic electronics and other semiconducting materials such as perovskites, metal-organic frameworks, nanowires, etc. He has published in several leading journals, including Nature Materials, Joule, Energy and Environmental Science, Advanced Materials, Advanced Energy Materials, Nature Communications, ACS Energy Letters, Nano-Micro Letters, Angewandte Chemie, and more.

T.A. Dela Pena finished his MPhil in Nano Science and Technology at HKUST Clear Water Bay campus in Hong Kong under the supervision of Prof. Kam Sing Wong. He finished his BSc in Chemical Engineering with Latin honors (magna cum laude) and also have been regularly included in the Dean's and President's List Academic Excellence awardees. Before starting his graduate study journey, he was awarded several international scholarship awards for visiting research studies at various universities worldwide, including National Tsing Hua University (Taiwan), Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (South Korea), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KSA), and Taiwan Academy of Science (Taiwan).

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Research Areas

Organic electronics, Solar energy conversions, Ultrafast Spectroscopy, Nano-structures/materials

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Education (Graduate Study)

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Guangzhou, China

• Degree: Ph.D. in Advanced Materials (September 2022 - Present)

• Department: Function Hub - Advanced Materials Thrust & Chemistry

• Research: Device physics and photophysics of optoelectronic devices

• Supervisors: Prof. Jiaying Wu and Prof. He Yan

• Special Awards: Guangdong-China Outstanding International Ph.D. Student

The Hong Kong Polytechnique University, Hong Kong, China

• Program: Visiting Ph.D. Student (September 2022 - Present)

• Department: Applied Physics

• Research: Ultrafast Spectroscopy of Photovoltaic Materials

• Supervisor: Prof. Mingjie Li

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST), Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong, China

• Degree: MPhil in Nano Science and Technology (September 2020 - December 2021)

• Department: Physics & William Mong Institute of Nano Science and Technology

• Research: Optoelectronic properties of organic solar cells

• Supervisor: Prof. Kam Sing Wong

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Research Publications (Journal Article)

--- First-author publications ---

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[7] Defining Solid Additive’s Pivotal Role on Morphology Regulation in Organic Solar Cells Produced by Layer-by-layer Deposition. Advanced Energy Materials, 2024, accepted (IF: 29.698)

[6] Efficient all-small-molecule organic solar cells processed with non-halogen solvent. Nature Communications, 2024, accepted (IF: 17.694)

[5] Manipulating the Charge Carriers through Functionally Bridged Components Advances Low-Cost Organic Solar Cells with Green Solvent Processing. Advanced Energy Materials, 14, 2303169 (IF: 29.698)

[4] Step-by-step Modulation of Crystalline Features and Exciton Kinetics of > 19.2% Efficiency Ortho-xylene Processed Organic Solar Cells. Nano-Micro Letters, 16, 30, 2024 (IF: 23.655)

[3] Interface Property-Functionality Interplay: Suppresses Bimolecular Recombination Facilitating Above 18% Efficiency Organic Solar Cells Embracing Simplistic Fabrication. Energy and Environmental Science, 2023, 16 (IF: 39.714)

[2] Effects of Vertical Molecular Stratifications and Microstructures on the Properties of Fullerene‐Free Organic Solar Cells. Advanced Photonics Research, 210033

[1] Understanding the Charge Transfer State and Energy Loss Trade-offs in Non-fullerene-Based Organic Solar Cells. ACS Energy Letters, 6, 10, 3408–341 (IF: 23.991)

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--- Co-author publications ---

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[22] Semitransparent organic photovoltaics enabled by transparent p-type inorganic semiconductor and near-infrared acceptor. Journal of Energy Chemistry, 2024, accepted

[21] Multifunctional PMMA intermediate layer for Sequentially Deposited Organic Photovoltaics. J. Mater. Chem. A, 2024, accepted

[20] Cyano-Functionalized Pyrazine: An Electron-Deficient Unit as Solid Additive Enables Binary Organic Solar Cells With 19.67% Efficiency. Energy and Environmental Science, 2024, accepted

[19] 19% Efficiency in Organic Solar Cells of Benzo[1,2-b:4,5-b']Difuran-Based Donor Polymer Realized by Volatile + Non-volatile Dual-Solid-Additive Strategy. Chemical Engineering Journal, 2024, accepted

[18] Enhanced molecular planarity for high-performance photodetectors: effect of backbone conformation via alkyl substitution position control in dithienoquinoxaline-based conjugated polymers. Chemical Engineering Journal, 2024, accepted

[17] 3D Crystal Framework Regulation Enables Se-Functionalized Small Molecule Acceptors Achieve Over 19% Efficiency. Adv. Energy Mater. 2024, 2304477

[16] Over 19% Efficiency Organic Solar cells Enabled by Manipulating the Intermolecular Interactions through Side Chain Fluorine Functionalization. Angew. Chem. Int. Ed. 2024, e202400086

[15] Isomerization of Benzothiadiazole Yields A Promising Polymer Donor and Organic Solar Cells with Efficiency of 19.0%. Adv. Mater. 2024, 2312311

[14] Exploiting the Donor-Acceptor-Additive Interaction’s Morphological Effect on the Performance of Organic Solar Cells. Aggregate, 2023, 00, e455

[13] Oligomeric Semiconductors Enable High Efficiency Open Air Processed Organic Solar Cells by Modulating Pre-aggregation and Crystallization Kinetics. Energy and Environmental Science, 2023,16, 6078-6093

[12] Isomerized green solid additive engineering for thermally-stable and eco-friendly all-polymer solar cells with approaching 19% efficiency. Advanced Materials, 2023, 2308334

[11] Blade-Coating and Eco-Friendly-Solvent Processed Organic Solar Cells with an Efficiency Approaching 19% Enabled by Alkyl-Tailored Guest Acceptors. Nano-Micro Lett. 15, 241 (2023)

[10] Tunable Donor Aggregation Dominance in Ternary Matrix of All-polymer Blends with Improved Efficiency And Stability. Advanced Materials, 2304632

[9] High-Performance Organic Solar Cells Containing Pyrido[2,3-b]quinoxaline-Core-Based Small-Molecule Acceptors with Optimized Orbit Overlap Lengths and Molecular Packing. Angewandte Chemie, 2023, 62, e202304127

[8] Isomeric Solid Additive Enables High-Efficiency Polymer Solar Cells Developed Using a Benzo-difuran-based Donor Polymer. Advanced Materials, 35, 2301231

[7] Unveiling the Morphological and Physical Mechanism of Burn-in Loss Alleviation by Ternary Matrix Towards Stable and Efficient All-Polymer Solar Cells. Advanced Materials, 2023, 35, 2212275

​[6] Achieving high efficiency and well-kept ductility in ternary all-polymer organic photovoltaic blends thanks to two well miscible donors. Matter, 5, 2, 725-734

[5] Impact of Acceptor Quadrupole Moment on Charge Generation and Recombination in Blends of IDT‐Based Non‐Fullerene Acceptors with PCE10 as Donor Polymer, Advanced Energy Materials, 210083

[4] 16% efficiency all-polymer organic solar cells enabled by a finely tuned morphology via the design of ternary blend, Joule, 5(4), 914-930

[3] Intrinsic efficiency limits in low-bandgap non-fullerene acceptor organic solar cells, Nature Materials, 20, 378–384 (2021)

[2] Co-catalytic Effects of Bi-Based Metal-Organic Framework on BiVO4 Photoanodes for Photoelectrochemical Water Oxidation, Applied Surface Science, 150357

[1] Characterization of Low-Pressure Nitrogen Plasma Discharge and Pre-Oxidation on the Surface Characteristics of Activated Carbons, Materials Science Forum, 998, 102–107

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Research Presentations (Conference)

[3] Interfacial disorder mitigates polaron recombination enabling high fill factors in state-of-the-art organic solar cells. Proceedings of International Conference on Hybrid and Organic Photovoltaics (HOPV 2023), London, United Kingdom

[2] Ultrafast Spectroscopy: Unravelling Design Rules for Simple yet Highly-Efficient Organic Solar Cells. Presented at the HK PolyU Academy of Interdisciplinary Research Conference 2023: Research excellence for societal impacts, Hung Hom, Hong Kong, China​

[1] Impact of Low band Gap Acceptor Electroluminescence in the Determination of Charge Transfer State Properties of Bulk Heterojunction Organic Solar Cells. Presented at 2020 KAUST Research Conference: Emerging concepts in solar energy conversion – from computation to implementation (2020), Thuwal, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

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Education (Undergraduate Study)

• B.Sc. in Chemical Engineering (5-years program with thesis), Magna Cum Laude, top 1% (academic rank) of the graduating batch, Philippines

• Research Intern, Academia Sinica, Institute of Physics (Prof. Yu-Chieh Wen), Taiwan

• Visiting Student, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Physical Science and Engineering (Prof. ‪Frédéric Laquai), KSA

• Research Intern, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, Materials Science and Engineering (Prof. Sanghan Lee), South Korea

• Exchange Research Student, National Tsing Hua University, Chemical Engineering (Prof. Shih-Yuan Lu), Taiwan

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Other Achievements and Awards

• Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Scholarship (2022)

• Graduate Excellence Scholarship Award, McGill University, Montreal, Canada (2022)

• Spring Internship Program Scholarship, Academia Sinica, Taiwan R.O.C. (2020)

• Visiting Student Program Scholarship, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, KSA (2019)

• Global Internship Program Scholarship, Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, South Korea (2019)

• Global Engineering Leadership Scholarship Award, National Tsing Hua University, Taiwan R.O.C. (2018)

• Merit Academic Scholarship Award for Bachelor's Study, Philippines (2014-2019)

• High School Honor Entry Academic Scholarship Award for Bachelor's Study, Philippines (2014)

• Bachelor Program President’s List Academic Excellence Award (2015-2019)

• Bachelor Program Dean’s List Academic Excellence Award (2014-2019)

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Teaching Experiences

Graduate Teaching Assistant (Spring 2024)

• The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Guangzhou, China

• AMAT 5560 - Modern Optical Spectroscopy and Microscopy

Graduate Teaching Assistant (Winter 2022)

• McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

• CHEM 120 - General Chemistry 2

Graduate Teaching Assistant (Fall 2021)

• The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Hong Kong, China

• PHYS 1112 - General Physics 1 with Calculus

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Social Participations

Guest Speaker​

• 18th Chemical Engineering Students Undergraduate Symposium (September 2023)

• MAPUA Malayan Colleges Laguna

Guest Speaker

• CHE183F Field Trips and Seminars Course - Semiconductors (April 2021)

• MCL Association of Chemical Engineering Students

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Memberships

Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC), Awarded Affiliate, 2024

Chinese Chemical Society (CCS), International Student, 2022-24