Low-cost Solar Energy Conversion Research Articles

Platinum nanoparticles decorated multiwalled carbon nanotube composites as highly transparent, bifacial counter electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) are low-cost solar energy conversion devices with variable color and transparency advantages. DSSCs' potential power efficiency output, even in diffuse light conditions with consistent performance, allows them to be used in building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) window applications. Significantly, the development of bifacial DSSCs is getting significant scientific consideration. Triiodide/iodide (I3–/I–) redox couple-mediated DSSCs require highly effective and stable electrocatalysts for I3− reduction to overcome their performance constraints. However, the commonly employed platinum (Pt) cathodes have restrictions on high price and unfavorable durability. Here, we report platinum nanoparticles (Pt NPs) incorporated into multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) composites with lower Pt content as an efficient bifacial counter electrode (CE) material for DSSC applications. Pt NPs were homogenously decorated over the MWCNT surfaces using a simple polyol method at relatively low temperatures. CEs fabricated using Pt/MWCNT composites exhibited excellent transparency and power conversion efficiencies (PCE) of 6.92% and 6.09% for front and rear illumination. The results are expected to bring significant advances in bifacial DSSCs for real-world window applications.

Application of Building Integrated Organic Photovoltaic Various Building Forms in Malaysia

Research on Building Integrated Photovoltaic BIPV with Organic Photovoltaic (OPV) materials and systems has increased because of their promise to deliver low-cost solar energy conversion. Since OPV devices' efficiency has quickly risen to above 10%, there is a huge commercial need for further development and manufacturing. The development of specialized materials and device designs, together with an improved understanding of the BIOPV efficiency. This paper discusses recent advances in OPV material, with a particular emphasis on various methods for forming OPV facades and modifying the orientation of the form to better absorb incoming light sources. The findings need to go through 6 form designs that have been divided into dynamic and organic forms. This research used simulation from ARCHIWIZARD and PV*Sol to evaluate different building forms in terms of solar exposure and shadow effect. The result shows that the pyramid building form receives higher solar exposure compared to other forms, thus better electricity generation. The solar-optimized pyramid introduces an innovative fusion of architectural principles and contemporary solar technology to enhance energy generation and sustainability. By capitalizing on the pyramid's design, orientation, and light-concentrating attributes, it not only captures abundant sunlight but also symbolizes renewable energy, bridging historical aesthetics with modern eco-conscious solutions.

Quasi-Solid-State SiO2 Electrolyte Prepared from Raw Fly Ash for Enhanced Solar Energy Conversion.

Quasi-solid-state electrolytes in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) prevent solvent leakage or evaporation and stability issues that conventional electrolytes cannot; however, there are no known reports that use such an electrolyte based on fly ash SiO2 (FA_SiO2) from raw fly ash (RFA) for solar energy conversion applications. Hence, in this study, quasi-solid-state electrolytes based on FA_SiO2 are prepared from RFA and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) for solar energy conversion. The structural, morphological, chemical, and electrochemical properties of the DSSCs using this electrolyte are characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), high-resolution field-emission scanning electron microscopy (HR-FESEM), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), diffuse reflectance spectroscopy, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and incident photon-to-electron conversion efficiency (IPCE) measurements. The DSSCs based on the quasi-solid-state electrolyte (SiO2) show a cell efficiency of 5.5%, which is higher than those of nanogel electrolytes (5.0%). The enhancement of the cell efficiency is primarily due to the increase in the open circuit voltage and fill factor caused by the reduced electron recombination and improved electron transfer properties. The findings confirm that the RFA-based quasi-solid-state (SiO2) electrolyte is an alternative to conventional liquid-state electrolytes, making this approach among the most promising strategies for use in low-cost solar energy conversion devices.

Bioelectricity generation from live marine photosynthetic macroalgae

The conversion of solar energy into electrical current by photosynthetic organisms has the potential to produce clean energy. Bio-photoelectrochemical cells (BPECs) utilizing unicellular photosynthetic microorganisms have been studied, however similar harvesting of electrons from more evolved intact photosynthetic organisms has not been previously reported. In this study, we describe for the first time BPECs containing intact live marine macroalgae (seaweeds) in natural seawater or saline buffer. The BPECs produce electrical currents of >50 mA/cm2, from both light-dependent (photosynthesis) and light-independent processes. These values are significantly greater than the current densities that have been reported for single-cell microorganisms. The photocurrent is inhibited by the Photosystem II inhibitor 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea, indicating that the source of light-driven electrons is from photosynthetic water oxidation. The current is mediated to the external anode via NADPH and possibly other reduced molecules. We show that intact macroalgae cultures can be used in large-scale BPECs containing seawater, to produce bias-free photocurrents, paving the way for the future development of low-cost energy solar energy conversion technologies using BPECs.

Building Block Design for Rapid Mass Transport in Quasi-Solid-State Solar Cells

Mesoscopic solar cells have rapidly emerged as a promising alternative to conventional silicon photovoltaics due to the combined benefits of low-cost, simple fabrication and competitive solar energy conversion efficiency. Recent success in low light absorption cobalt (II/III) polypyridyl complexes has led to encouraging solar energy conversion efficiencies in excess of 13%. Moreover, as one-electron redox mediators, cobalt (II/III) complexes based DSC systems also show a lower overpotential for dye regeneration and better compatibility with flexible metal substrates than iodide/tri-iodide. Such efforts open up great possibilities towards commercial applications.In contrast to the conventional organic liquid electrolytes that commonly have challenges durable encapsulation of the devices due to solvent evaporation, gel electrolytes have exhibited an impressive long-term stability, especially for outdoor applications where temperature of the DSC system can reach 80-85 oC under sunlight. Improvement on mass transport of the considerably large sized cobalt (II/III) complexes, particularly in high viscosity electrolyte, is crucial for solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells (SS-DSCs) to reach a reliable high efficiency toward practical applications.In this work, titania nanorod aggregates (TNA) with a great specific surface area and well-developed crystalline network were synthesized through a solvothermal approach and utilized as photoanode building blocks for application in cobalt (II/III) tris(2′2-bipyridine) complexes based solid-state electrolyte. An initial efficiency excess 7.1% and a long term stable efficiency of approximately 8.0% were achieved at full sun illumination by freshly assembled and aged TNA SS-DSCs, respectively. This represents dramatic enhancements of nearly 35% and 100% against the SS-DSCs prepared from two standard TiO2 nanoparticle samples – CCIC (approx. 5.9%) and Degussa P25 (approx. 4.0%), correspondingly. The TNA is characterised by a combination of mesopores within each aggregate and macro inter-aggregates voids, a high specific surface area and a great light scattering ability; such features make the aggregates superior photoanode building blocks for the application in bulky cobalt redox mediator based SS-DSCs system.

Enhancing the water splitting performance via decorating Fe2O3 nanoarrays with oxygen-vacancy-rich Ni1-xFexS electrocatalyst

In this work, oxygen-vacancy-rich Ni1-xFexS electrocatalyst modified Fe2O3 nanoarrays photoanode (denoted as Ni1-xFexS/Fe2O3) has been prepared firstly through a facile dripping solution method and a sulfurized process. As-prepared Ni1-xFexS/Fe2O3 anode shows a very high photocurrent density of ∼3.48 mA/cm2 at 1.23 V vs. reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE) and a saturated photocurrent density of 7.03 mA/cm2 at 1.57 V vs. RHE in PEC water splitting, which is 2.5 times of Fe2O3 (1.38 mA/cm2 at 1.23 V vs. RHE and 2.98 mA/cm2 at 1.57 V vs. RHE, respectively). Moreover, the photocurrent onset potential shows a distinct negative shift of about 272 mV. The Ni1-xFexS/Fe2O3 photoanode is controllable to achieve superior PEC performance because of the synergistic effects of Ni1-xFexS electrocatalyst and oxygen vacancies. Since in situ formed Ni1-xFexS electrocatalyst not only increase electrochemical active surface area of electrode, but also dramatically decrease solid and electrolyte interface resistance as well as dramatically suppresses charge carrier recombination in Fe2O3 photoanodes. In the meanwhile, introduced the oxygen vacancies in a sulfurized process of Ni1-xFexS electrocatalyst serve as active sites for sufficient chemical reaction. Hence, our work testifies oxygen-vacancy-rich Ni1-xFexS not only act as a promising OER electrocatalyst, but also offers a new strategy to prepare efficient and low-cost PEC solar energy conversion devices.

“Green”, gradient multi-shell CuInSe2/(CuInSexS1-x)5/CuInS2 quantum dots for photo-electrochemical hydrogen generation

Colloidal quantum dots (QDs) are promising building blocks for the realization of future optoelectronic technologies. In particular, they are widely studied for photoelectric conversion, thanks to their low cost and high solar energy conversion efficiency. The majority of the QDs used in devices for photoelectrochemical (PEC) hydrogen generation is based on heavy-metal containing materials, such as Pb and Cd. Unfortunately, the use of these materials hamper their prospective to be commercially developed due to health and environmental concerns. In this work, by using a template assisted cation exchange procedure, we developed eco-friendly CuInSe2/(CuInSexS1-x)5/CuInS2 QDs based on a gradient multi shell architecture, exhibiting tunable Near Infra-Red (NIR) optical absorption and photoluminescence (PL) properties. The NIR QDs are used as sensitizer for mesoporous TiO2 and employed for PEC hydrogen production. The PEC device based on the gradient architecture showed a 200 % improvement compared to the simple core CuInSe2 QDs and 73 % compared to the core/shell structure. The enhancement is ascribed to favorable stepwise electronic band alignment and improved electron transfer rate with the incorporation of interfacial gradient layers. These results could pave the way for the synthesis of heavy-metal-free QDs, exhibiting broad application in emerging optoelectronic technologies.

In-Situ Energy Dispersive X-ray Reflectivity Applied to Polyoxometalate Films: An Approach to Morphology and Interface Stability Issues in Organic Photovoltaics

Organic solar cells, characterized by a symmetrical regular layered structure, are very promising systems for developing green, low cost, and flexible solar energy conversion devices. Despite the efficiencies being appealing (over 17%), the technological transfer is still limited by the low durability. Several processes, in bulk and at interface, are responsible. The quick downgrading of the performance is due to a combination of physical and chemical degradations. These phenomena induce instability and a drop of performance in working conditions. Close monitoring of these processes is mandatory to understand the degradation pathways upon device operation. Here, an unconventional approach based on Energy Dispersive X-ray Reflectivity (ED-XRR) performed in-situ is used to address the role of Wells–Dawson polyoxometalate (K6-P2W18O62, hereafter K6-P2W18) as hole transporting layer in organic photovoltaics. The results demonstrate that K6-P2W18 thin films, showing ideal bulk and interface properties and superior optical/morphological stability upon prolonged illumination, are attractive candidates for the interface of durable OPV devices.

Highly stable all-in-one photoelectrochemical electrodes based on carbon nanowalls

Photoelectrochemical (PEC) cells offer a promising approach for developing low-cost solar energy conversion systems. However, the lack of stable and cost-effective electrodes remains a bottleneck that hampers their practical applications. Here, we propose a kind of integrated all-in-one three-dimensional (3D) carbon nanowall (CNW) electrode without sensitized semiconductors for stable all-carbon PEC cells. The all-in-one CNW electrodes were fabricated by directly growing CNW on both sides of the SiO2/Si/SiO2 wafer employing the radio frequency plasmon enhanced chemical vapor deposition method. Benefitting from the interconnected 3D textured structure, the CNW can effectively absorb the incident light and provide a large electrochemical reaction interface at the CNW surface that promotes the separation of photogenerated charge carriers, which makes it a superior electrode material. Experimental results show that the all-in-one CNW electrodes possess excellent PEC performance with a photocurrent density of 830 μA cm−2. Moreover, the CNW electrodes exhibit excellent photoresponses over a wide waveband and superior stability with a maintained photocurrent response, even after 60 d, which outperforms the electrodes using the other two-dimensional layered materials or semiconductor sensitized electrodes. Such an all-in-one electrode with impressive photovoltaic properties provides a promising platform for PEC applications that is eco-friendly with high efficiency, excellent stability and low cost.

Full SnO2 double-layer dye-sensitized solar cells: Slowly increasing phenomenon of power conversion efficiency

Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) have been proven as effective photovoltaic devices for low-cost and large-scale solar energy conversion applications. Fast electron transport, large specific surface area, and slow interfacial electron recombination are indispensable features for an efficient photoelectrode. In this work, we report full SnO2 double-layer DSCs. SnO2 nanoparticles as electron transport layer and large SnO2 particles as scattering layer (SL) are prepared by the hydrothermal method, respectively. Ultrathin Al2O3 barrier layer on the surface of SnO2 film is formed by immersing in Al (NO3)3 solutions and annealed at atmosphere in turn to retard back transfer of electrons to the electrolyte or to the oxidized dye molecules. Four kind cells with SnO2, SnO2/SL, SnO2/Al2O3 and SnO2/SL/Al2O3 film as photoanodes were fabricated, respectively, and their power conversion efficiency (PCE) was continuously tested for 60 days. The open-circuit voltage (Voc), fill factor (FF) and PCE of four kind cells are gradually improved, while short-circuit current (Jsc) is slightly reduced during testing. As a result, the PCE of the SnO2 based DSC increased from 1.36% (0 day) to 3.5% (20 day), and the PCE of the SnO2/SL/Al2O3 based DSC increased from 2.53% (0 day) to 4.57% (20 day). This novel slow increasing phenomenon of PCE observed in SnO2 DSCs is different from that of TiO2 and ZnO. This kind of structure of DSCs and the slowly increasing phenomenon have far-reaching significance for understanding the working mechanism and increasing efficiency.

Prompting Mass Transfer in Solid-State Solar Cells Using Submicron Spherical Mesoporous Titanium Oxide Aggregates

Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) combines benefits of low-cost, simple fabrication and competitive solar energy conversion efficiency. Recent success in the replacement of traditional iodide/tri-iodide redox mediators by noncorrosive, less light absorption cobalt (II/III) polypyridyl complexes has led to encouraging solar energy conversion efficiencies in excess of 13%, well beyond that of iodide/tri-iodide based electrolytes (ca.11%). Solvent evaporation in traditional liquid electrolyte challenges durable encapsulation of DSCs. This has driven increasing focus on alternative semi-solid-state electrolytes for practical DSC applications. Gel electrolytes have exhibited an impressive long-term stability, especially for outdoor applications where temperature of the DSC system can reach 80-85 oC under sunlight. In a solid-state gel electrolyte, the mass transport of cobalt (II/III) complexes is greatly retarded by the highly viscous gelatinous environment, which limits the dye regeneration and thus the overall efficiency of the SS-DSCs. To date, there are still very limited reports of this new type of SS-DSCs, leaving great scope for further development. Sophisticated architectural designs that leverage macro-porosity to promote ionic diffusion and meso-porosity to increase specific surface area for dye loading may also provide a viable solution to tackle the current limit in cobalt gel electrolyte based SS-DSCs, leading to a higher efficiency [1]. In this work, we establish that a simple replacement of photoanode building-blocks from standard commercial TiO2 nanoparticles (CCIC and P25) to titania nanorod aggregates (TNA) enabled remarkable improvement on ionic diffusion of cobalt (II/III) tris(2′2-bipyridine) complexes in a gel electrolyte. An overall solar energy conversion efficiency of over 7.1% and 8.0% was reached by freshly constructed and stabilized SS-DSCs using the TNA, respectively. Those correspond to efficiency enhancements up to 35% and 100% against that of the standard TiO2 nanoparticles – P25 (4.0%) and CCIC (5.9%), respectively.

Polyviologens As Electron Transport Material in Photosystem I-Based Photovoltaic Cells

Photosynthesis, the conversion of solar energy into chemical energy, fuels our increasing energy consumption through the use of fossil fuels derived from ancient organic matter. However, the associated greenhouse gas emissions have resulted in several problems such as climate change and environmental pollution. As a result of the increasing demand for alternative energy sources, decades of research have been dedicated to mimicking photosynthesis in artificial bio-hybrid devices. Photosynthesis is powered by two key proteins, Photosystem II (PSII) and Photosystem I (PSI), that act in series as biological pseudo-photodiodes. Both proteins can be extracted from a wide variety of plant materials and have the potential to be implemented on a global scale for low-cost solar energy conversion. Photosystem I (PSI), in particular, is ideal for use in solar cells due to its innate ability to photoexcite electrons with a quantum efficiency approaching unity. In vivo, these electrons are then mediated to the water-soluble redox protein called ferrodoxin; in artificial biohybrid devices, these electron acceptor proteins must be replaced with electrodes and electrochemical mediators. In this work, novel PSI-based solar cells were prepared by using polyviologens as the electron-transport layer between the PSI protein and the indium tin oxide (ITO) anode. Redox polymer-modified electrodes are increasingly used as electron-transfer catalysts in electrochemical applications. Polyviologens are a unique class of organic polycationic polymers, which can rapidly accept excited state electrons from a primary donor such as PSI and subsequently donate them to a secondary acceptor. Our device is a unique example of the direct use of extracted PSI protein to create photoactive biohybrid electrodes and represents one of few reported methods for incorporating PSI into a solid-state device, eliminating the problems associated with wet photoelectrochemical cells, such as corrosion and leaks.

Single-Stroke Synthesis of Tin Sulphide/Oxide Nanocomposites Within Engineering Thermoplastic and Their Humidity Response.

SnS nanostructured materials have attracted enormous interest due to their important properties and potential application in low cost solar energy conversion systems and optical devices. From the perspective of SnS based device fabrication, we offer single-stroke in-situ technique for the generation of Sn based sulphide and oxide nanostructures inside the polymer network via polymer-inorganic solid state reaction route. In this method, polyphenylene sulphide (PPS)-an engineering thermoplastic-acts as chalcogen source as well as stabilizing matrix for the resultant nano products. Typical solid state reaction was accomplished by simply heating the physical admixtures of the tin salts (viz. tin acetate/tin chloride) with PPS at the crystalline melting temperature (285 °C) of PPS in inert atmosphere. The synthesized products were characterized by using various physicochemical characterization techniques. The prima facie observations suggest the concurrent formation of nanocrystalline SnS with extraneous oxide phase. The TEM analysis revealed formation of nanosized particles of assorted morphological features with polydispersity confined to 5 to 50 nm. However, agglomerated particles of nano to submicron size were also observed. The humidity sensing characterization of these nanocomposites was also performed. The resistivity response with the level of humidity (20 to 85% RH) was compared for these nanocomposites. The linear response was obtained for both the products. Nevertheless, the nanocomposite product obtained from acetate precursor showed higher sensitivity towards the humidity than that of one prepared from chloride precursor.

Defect Mitigation of Solution-Processed 2D WSe2 Nanoflakes for Solar-to-Hydrogen Conversion.

Few-atomic-layer nanoflakes of liquid-phase exfoliated semiconducting transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) hold promise for large-area, high-performance, low-cost solar energy conversion, but their performance is limited by recombination at defect sites. Herein, we examine the role of defects on the performance of WSe2 thin film photocathodes for solar H2 production by applying two separate treatments, a pre-exfoliation annealing and a post-deposition surfactant attachment, designed to target intraflake and edge defects, respectively. Analysis by TEM, XRD, XPS, photoluminescence, and impedance spectroscopy are used to characterize the effects of the treatments and photoelectrochemical (PEC) measurements using an optimized Pt-Cu cocatalyst (found to offer improved robustness compared to Pt) are used to quantify the performance of photocathodes (ca. 11 nm thick) consisting of 100-1000 nm nanoflakes. Surfactant treatment results in an increased photocurrent attributed to edge site passivation. The pre-annealing treatment alone, while clearly altering the crystallinity of pre-exfoliated powders, does not significantly affect the photocurrent. However, applying both defect treatments affords a considerable improvement that represents a new benchmark for the performance of solution-processed WSe2: solar photocurrents for H2 evolution up to 4.0 mA cm-2 and internal quantum efficiency over 60% (740 nm illumination). These results also show that charge recombination at flake edges dominates performance in bare TMD nanoflakes, but when the edge defects are passivated, internal defects become important and can be reduced by pre-annealing.

Facile room-temperature surface modification of unprecedented FeB co-catalysts on Fe2O3 nanorod photoanodes for high photoelectrochemical performance

An unprecedented FeB-based co-catalyst for Fe2O3 nanorod photoanodes is explored for the first time by a simple room-temperature dipping method. The FeB overlayer formed in situ, which inherently possesses good interfacial contact, can remarkably suppress charge carrier recombination in Fe2O3 photoanodes and dramatically decrease electrode/electrolyte interface resistance. These beneficial features promote a twofold increment in photocurrent density and significantly reduce the onset potential of Fe2O3 photoanodes. Furthermore, their photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance can be further improved by co-loading of Co–Pi. The photocurrent density of 1.9mA/cm2 at 1.23V vs. RHE and the particularly low onset potential of 0.61V, which is dominantly smaller than those reported so far, can be realized controllably. Hence, our work suggests a new and promising co-catalyst for Fe2O3 photoanode. It also offers a facile strategy for fabricating low-cost and efficient PEC solar energy conversion devices.

Roadmap and roadblocks for the band gap tunability of metal halide perovskites

Solar cells based on metal-halide perovskite semiconductors inspire high hopes for efficient low-cost solar energy conversion technology. We here reflect on recent progress and potential limitations of the band gap tunability of these compound semiconductors.

Ultrafast Hole Trapping and Relaxation Dynamics in p-Type CuS Nanodisks

CuS nanocrystals are potential materials for developing low-cost solar energy conversion devices. Understanding the underlying dynamics of photoinduced carriers in CuS nanocrystals is essential to improve their performance in these devices. In this work, we investigated the photoinduced hole dynamics in CuS nanodisks (NDs) using the combination of transient optical (OTA) and X-ray (XTA) absorption spectroscopy. OTA results show that the broad transient absorption in the visible region is attributed to the photoinduced hot and trapped holes. The hole trapping process occurs on a subpicosecond time scale, followed by carrier recombination (~100 ps). The nature of the hole trapping sites, revealed by XTA, is characteristic of S or organic ligands on the surface of CuS NDs. These results not only suggest the possibility to control the hole dynamics by tuning the surface chemistry of CuS but also represent the first time observation of hole dynamics in semiconductor nanocrystals using XTA.

Transforming the cost of solar-to-electrical energy conversion: Integrating thin-film GaAs solar cells with non-tracking mini-concentrators

Practical solar energy solutions must not only reduce the cost of the module, but also address the substantial balance of system costs. Here, we demonstrate a counter-intuitive approach based on gallium arsenide solar cells that can achieve extremely low-cost solar energy conversion with an estimated cost of only 3% that of conventional gallium arsenide solar cells using an accelerated, non-destructive epitaxial lift-off wafer recycling process along with a lightweight, thermoformed plastic, truncated mini-compound parabolic concentrator that avoids the need for active solar tracking. Using solar cell/concentrator assemblies whose orientations are adjusted only a few times per year, the annual energy harvesting is increased by 2.8 times compared with planar solar cells without solar tracking. These results represent a potentially drastic cost reduction in both the module and the balance of system costs compared with heavy, rigid conventional modules and trackers that are subject to wind loading damage and high installation costs. Thin-film GaAs solar cells integrated with wide-acceptance-angle compound parabolic concentrators could slash solar energy costs. Researchers at the University of Michigan in the USA have dramatically reduced the material and fabrication costs of GaAs solar cells by using an accelerated, non-destructive epitaxial lift-off fabrication process and by incorporating mini concentrators. They estimate that the material and fabrication costs of these solar cells are a mere 3% those of analogous substrate-based GaAs cells and 11% those of solar cells produce by conventional epitaxial lift-off methods. The wide acceptance angles of the concentrators means that the solar cell orientation only needs adjusting a few times per year, eliminating the need to use expensive active solar tracking. Furthermore, the solar cells can be operated at or near room temperature, and hence do not require active cooling.

Computational Studies on 5-(4-(4-(Diphenylamino)Phenylamino) phenyl)-2-Cyanopenta-2,4-enoic Acid for dye Sensitized Solar cell Application

Dye-sensitized solar cells have gained widespread interest for their potential as low-cost solar energy conversion devices. In this paper, we present a computational study of 5-(4-(4-(diphenylamino)phenylamino) phenyl)-2-cyanopenta-2,4-enoic acid dye using density functional theory (DFT) and Time dependent density functional theory (TD-DFT) method with B3LYP/6-31G(d,p) level basis set. The structural geometry, orbitals energy, polarizability and hyperpolarizability of this dye were studied. The calculated HOMO and LUMO energy gap shows that the charge transfer occurs in the sensitizer. The calculated results of this dye demonstrate that this dye can be used as potential sensitizer with TiO2 and (I-/I3-) electrolyte for DSSC.

ChemInform Abstract: Surface Engineering of ZnO Nanostructures for Semiconductor‐Sensitized Solar Cells

AbstractReview: 277 refs.