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Titanium Dioxide Mesoporous Electrodes for Solid‐State Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells: Cross‐Analysis of the Critical Parameters
Author(s) -
Colella Silvia,
Orgiu Emanuele,
Bruder Ingmar,
Liscio Andrea,
Palermo Vincenzo,
Bruchmann Bernd,
Samorì Paolo,
Erk Peter
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
advanced energy materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 10.08
H-Index - 220
eISSN - 1614-6840
pISSN - 1614-6832
DOI - 10.1002/aenm.201301362
Subject(s) - materials science , mesoporous material , dye sensitized solar cell , titanium dioxide , electrode , anode , open circuit voltage , photovoltaic system , nanotechnology , auxiliary electrode , chemical engineering , optoelectronics , capacitance , voltage , composite material , chemistry , ecology , biochemistry , physics , quantum mechanics , engineering , electrolyte , biology , catalysis
We report a comparative study on the use of four different mesoporous titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) photo‐electrodes for the fabrication of solid‐state dye‐sensitized solar cells (sDSSCs). The photovoltaic parameters of the device correlate with several intrinsic properties of the film, based not only on its morphological features, as commonly considered in standard characterizations, but also on the transport and the electronic properties of the photo‐electrode. These properties differ significantly for TiO 2 electrodes processed using different colloidal pastes, and are decisive for the photovoltaic efficiency, ranging from 3.7% up to 5.1%. In particular, the dielectric permittivity of each mesoporous layer ( ε eff ) and the number of traps ( N t ) determined by the space‐charge‐limited current (SCLC) theory are found to be a bottle‐neck for the charge transport, greatly influencing the fill factor (FF) and open circuit voltage ( V oc ) of the cells. In addition, a direct correlation between TiO 2 surface potential with the V oc was established. Cross‐analysis of key macroscopic parameters of the films prior to integration in the devices, in particular focusing on the determination of the capacitance and surface potential shift of the TiO 2 mesoporous anode, represents a straightforward yet powerful method to screen and select the most suitable TiO 2 for applications in sDSSCs.