Mei Yu,Jindan Zhang,Songmei Li,Yanbing Meng,Jianhua Liu
The performances of photovoltaic devices can be improved by increasing light-harvesting and charge collection respectively. The design and synthesis of nanocomposites with the ability of enhancing the generation and collection of the photo-generated electrons provide a significant way to improve the power conversion efficiency (PCE). Herein, SWNTs@(TiO2/Ag/Au) nanocomposites were synthesized and successfully integrated into photoanode films of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) to improve the power conversion efficiency. The synthesis processes were based on multi-functional DNA. DNA not only works as a dispersing agent preventing SWNTs bundling but also as a sacrificial mold assembling TiO2, Ag and Au nanoparticles on the surface of the SWNTs. The synthesized SWNTs@(TiO2/Ag/Au) nanocomposites enhance the charge collection and light-harvesting of DSSCs simultaneously. With 2.45 wt% SWNTs@(TiO2/Ag/Au) nanocomposites incorporating into the photoanode films, the PCE of the DSSCs increases from 6.8% to 8.3%.
Ying Yang,Pengfei Yi,Conghua Zhou,Jiarui Cui,Xiaolu Zheng,Si Xiao,Xueyi Guo,Wenyong Wang
In this work we investigate novel, agarose-based polymer electrolyte that is modified by magnetic NiO nanoparticles for solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) applications. After proper treatment under an external magnetic field , the agarose electrolyte exhibits increased ionic conductivity and better penetration into the mesoporous TiO 2 photoanode film, which improves the power conversion efficiency of the DSSCs. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurement is also performed to analyze the magnetic field effect on cell performance. After applying proper magnetic filed intensity, the recombination resistance and redox transport resistance in the devices are improved. This method can be possibly applied to other solid-state electrolyte materials to improve their performance and can lead to more efficient DSSCs.