A Ruthenium‐Based Light‐Harvesting Antenna Bearing an Anthracene Moiety in Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells

A heteroleptic ruthenium sensitizer ( DV56 ) bearing a terpyridine ligand with an appended phenylanthracene moiety was synthesized and extensively characterized. The physicochemical properties of the light‐harvesting antenna were studied in solution and on sensitized TiO 2 thin film electrodes using a variety of spectroscopic and photoelectrochemical techniques. Contact angle measurements suggest that the DV56 ‐sensitized TiO 2 films are hydrophilic. Raman measurements indicate chemisorption of the dye on the semiconducting surface. Electrochemical studies of the dye show that its first oxidation potential lies well below the I − /I 3 − redox potential, allowing easy regeneration. Moreover, its excited state oxidation potential lies above the TiO 2 conduction band edge, permitting efficient electron injection from the photosensitizer into the semiconductor. I − /I 3 − ‐based liquid redox electrolyte dye‐sensitized solar cells incorporating DV56 ‐sensitized TiO 2 photoelectrodes afford an overall power conversion efficiency of 3.75 %.