This paper is concerned with the improvement of dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) efficiency upon ZnO-coating of the TiO2 electrode. Sol-gel ZnO of controlled amount by varying the number of sol drops during spin-coati...This paper is concerned with the improvement of dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) efficiency upon ZnO-coating of the TiO2 electrode. Sol-gel ZnO of controlled amount by varying the number of sol drops during spin-coating is shown to increase the DSSC efficiency. The highest efficiency is obtained at a single sol drop with enhancement of 40%, while beyond this amount the efficiency falls down sharply to zero. Based on measured optical absorption spectra of the different dye-loaded electrodes, it is concluded that this amount of ZnO sol corresponds to the thinnest layer that can create the energy barrier to minimize the electron recombination rate without seriously affecting the dye adsorption efficiency of the TiO2 film.展开更多
Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) with ZnO spin-coated TiO2 photo-electrodes are compared to DSSC with a bare TiO2 photo-electrode. It is demonstrated that the deposited ZnO of controlled amount, by varying the precu...Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) with ZnO spin-coated TiO2 photo-electrodes are compared to DSSC with a bare TiO2 photo-electrode. It is demonstrated that the deposited ZnO of controlled amount, by varying the precursor concentration in the coating sol, can indeed enhance the performance of the DSSC. The measured power conversion efficiency shows a maximum around the precursor concentration 0.1 M and falls down sharply to 0% beyond this point. The results are interpreted on the basis of two competing factors: At ZnO concentrations less than 0.1 M, the formation of an energy barrier increases the photocurrent by reducing the rate of interfacial back-recombination. At ZnO concentrations greater than 0.1 M, the screening of the TiO2 film by thicker ZnO layers decreases the photocurrent through the reduction of TiO2 dye-adsorption efficiency.展开更多
文摘This paper is concerned with the improvement of dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) efficiency upon ZnO-coating of the TiO2 electrode. Sol-gel ZnO of controlled amount by varying the number of sol drops during spin-coating is shown to increase the DSSC efficiency. The highest efficiency is obtained at a single sol drop with enhancement of 40%, while beyond this amount the efficiency falls down sharply to zero. Based on measured optical absorption spectra of the different dye-loaded electrodes, it is concluded that this amount of ZnO sol corresponds to the thinnest layer that can create the energy barrier to minimize the electron recombination rate without seriously affecting the dye adsorption efficiency of the TiO2 film.
文摘Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) with ZnO spin-coated TiO2 photo-electrodes are compared to DSSC with a bare TiO2 photo-electrode. It is demonstrated that the deposited ZnO of controlled amount, by varying the precursor concentration in the coating sol, can indeed enhance the performance of the DSSC. The measured power conversion efficiency shows a maximum around the precursor concentration 0.1 M and falls down sharply to 0% beyond this point. The results are interpreted on the basis of two competing factors: At ZnO concentrations less than 0.1 M, the formation of an energy barrier increases the photocurrent by reducing the rate of interfacial back-recombination. At ZnO concentrations greater than 0.1 M, the screening of the TiO2 film by thicker ZnO layers decreases the photocurrent through the reduction of TiO2 dye-adsorption efficiency.