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A ZnO/TiO 2 composite nanorods photoanode with improved performance for dye‐sensitized solar cells
Author(s) -
Feng Yamin,
Chen Jinghua,
Huang Xintang,
Liu Weifeng,
Zhu Yu,
Qin Wei,
Mo Xiaoyuan
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
crystal research and technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.377
H-Index - 64
eISSN - 1521-4079
pISSN - 0232-1300
DOI - 10.1002/crat.201600012
Subject(s) - dye sensitized solar cell , nanorod , overlayer , materials science , composite number , energy conversion efficiency , chemical engineering , electrolyte , layer (electronics) , optoelectronics , nanotechnology , electrode , composite material , chemistry , engineering
A dye‐sensitized solar cell (DSSC) based on ZnO/TiO 2 composite nanorods (NRs) photoanode is fabricated. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the ZnO/TiO 2 composite NRs film DSSC is 4.36%, which is obviously higher than that of DSSCs based on pure TiO 2 NRs (0.6%) and ZnO NRs (3.10%). The enhanced performance of ZnO/TiO 2 composite NRs film DSSC can be attributed to the combined effects of ZnO and TiO 2 NRs. In this architecture, the thick ZnO NRs overlayer offers a large surface area for enough dye absorption, while the thin TiO 2 NRs underlayer not only offers a direct and quick pathway for photoinjected electron transfer along the photoanode but also acts as a blocking layer, which effectively hinders the direct contact between the substrate and the electrolyte resulting in lower carrier recombination.