Abstract
A hierarchical array of ZnO nanocones covered with ZnO nanospikes was hydrothermally fabricated and employed as the photoanode in a CdS quantum dot-sensitized solar cell (QDSSC). This QDSSC outperformed the QDSSC based on a simple ZnO nanocone photoanode in all the four principal photovoltaic parameters. Using the hierarchical photoanode dramatically increased the short circuit current density and also slightly raised the open circuit voltage and the fill factor. As a result, the conversion efficiency of the QDSSC based on the hierarchical photoanode was more than twice that of the QDSSC based on the simple ZnO nanocone photoanode. This improvement is attributable to both the enlarged specific area of the photoanode and the reduction in the recombination of the photoexcited electrons.
Highlights
The key components of a sensitized solar cell are the photoanode, sensitizer and electrolyte
The cone-shaped primary zinc oxide (ZnO) nanostructures shown in Fig 1A and 1B, which were fabricated in the aqueous solution of Zn(NO3)2 and HMTA, are all roughly upwards aligned
When the growth time was prolonged to 6 and 9 h, the height increased to 5.7 and 6.6 μm, respectively. (S1 Fig) After the reaction in the aqueous solution of ZnAc and NaOH, as shown in Fig 1C and 1D, the previously smooth ZNC surfaces were covered with secondary small protrusions, hereafter referred to as “ZnO nanospikes (ZNSs)”, and became quite rough
Summary
The key components of a sensitized solar cell are the photoanode, sensitizer (dye molecules or semiconductor quantum dots) and electrolyte. The cone-shaped primary ZnO nanostructures shown in Fig 1A and 1B, which were fabricated in the aqueous solution of Zn(NO3)2 and HMTA, are all roughly upwards aligned.
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