Influence of thin film thickness of working electrodes on photovoltaic characteristics of dye-sensitized solar cells

Yeong-Lin Lai,Nai-Kun Hsu,Yeong-Kang Lai,Guan-Yun Lung,Yung-Hua Chou,Chun-Yi Zheng,Hung-Ru Hsu,Gow-Yi Tzou

doi:10.1051/matecconf/201712300030

Abstract

This paper presents the study of the influence of thin film thickness of working electrodes on the photovoltaic characteristics of dye-sensitized solar cells. Titanium dioxide (TiO2) thin films, with the thickness from 7.67 to 24.3 μ m, were used to fabricate the working electrodes of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). A TiO2 film was coated on a fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) conductive glass substrate and then sintered in a high-temperature furnace. On the other hand, platinum (Pt) solution was coated onto an FTO substrate for the fabrication of the counter electrode of a DSSC. The working electrode immersed in a dye, the counter electrode, and the electrolyte were assembled to complete a sandwich-structure DSSC. The material analysis of the TiO2 films of DSSCs was carried out by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and ultraviolet-visible (UV-Vis) spectroscopy, while the photovoltaic characteristics of DSSCs were measured by an AM-1.5 sunlight simulator. The light transmittance characteristics of the TiO2 working electrode depend on the TiO2 film thickness. The thin film thickness of the working electrode also affects the light absorption of a dye and results in the photovoltaic characteristics of the DSSC, including open-circuited voltage ( V OC), short-circuited current density ( J SC), fill factor, and photovoltaic conversion efficiency.

Highlights

The rapid economic development and rapid population expansion have caused a deteriorating energy problem
The surface morphology of the thin film under various coating conditions was studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis
The photovoltaic characteristics of the dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) were measured by an AM-1.5 sunlight simulator with a light intensity of 100 mW/cm2

Summary

Introduction

The rapid economic development and rapid population expansion have caused a deteriorating energy problem. On the other hand, burning too much coal, oil, and natural gas will release a large amount of carbon dioxide, cause air pollution, and deteriorate global climate warming. These have a serious impact on the environment and life. The dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) is one of the most promising potential solar power sources [4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19]. In 2010, Grätzel’s group discussed the effect of heat and light on the performance of DSSCs based on organic sensitizers and nanostructured TiO2 [22]. The structure components of the DSSC were stacked like a sandwich

Preparation of working electrodes

Preparation of counter electrodes

Preparation of dyes

Cell assembly

Results and discussion

Conclusion