Hyunbong Choi

Know thy nano neighbor. Plasmonic versus electron charging effects of metal nanoparticles in dye-sensitized solar cells.

Neighboring metal nanoparticles influence photovoltaic and photocatalytic behavior of semiconductor nanostructures either through Fermi level equilibration by accepting electrons or inducing localized surface plasmon effects. By employing SiO(2)- and TiO(2)-capped Au nanoparticles we have identified the mechanism with which the performance of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC) is influenced by the neighboring metal nanoparticles. The efficiency of an N719 dye-sensitized solar cell (9.3%) increased to 10.2% upon incorporation of 0.7% Au@SiO(2) and to 9.8% upon loading of 0.7% Au@TiO(2) nanoparticles. The plasmonic effect as monitored by introducing Au@SiO(2) in DSSC produces higher photocurrent. However, Au nanoparticles undergo charge equilibration with TiO(2) nanoparticles and shift the apparent Fermi level of the composite to more negative potentials. As a result, Au@TiO(2) nanoparticle-embedded DSSC exhibit higher photovoltage. A better understanding of these two effects is crucial in exploiting the beneficial aspects of metal nanoparticles in photovoltaics.

Metal-cluster-sensitized solar cells. A new class of thiolated gold sensitizers delivering efficiency greater than 2%.

A new class of metal-cluster sensitizers has been explored for designing high-efficiency solar cells. Thiol-protected gold clusters which exhibit molecular-like properties have been found to inject electrons into TiO2 nanostructures under visible excitation. Mesoscopic TiO2 films modified with gold clusters deliver stable photocurrent of 3.96 mA/cm(2) with power conversion efficiencies of 2.3% under AM 1.5 illumination. The overall absorption features and cell performance of metal-cluster-sensitized solar cells (MCSCs) are comparable to those of CdS quantum-dot-based solar cells (QDSCs). The relatively high open-circuit voltage of 832 mV and fill factor of 0.7 for MCSCs as compared to QDSCs show the viability of these new sensitizers as alternatives to semiconductor QDs and sensitizing dyes in the next generation of solar cells. The superior performance of MCSCs discussed in this maiden study lays the foundation to explore other metal clusters with broader visible absorption.

Efficient and stable panchromatic squaraine dyes for dye-sensitized solar cells

A new series of stable, unsymmetrical squaraine near-IR sensitizers (JK-216 and JK-217), which are assembled using both thiophenyl pyrrolyl and indolium groups, exhibit a panchromatic light harvesting up to 780 nm. The JK-216 based cell exhibited a record efficiency of 6.29% for near-IR DSSCs. In addition, the JK-217 device showed an excellent stability under a light soaking test at 60 °C for 1000 h.

High Molar Extinction Coefficient Organic Sensitizers for Efficient Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

We have designed and synthesized highly efficient organic sensitizers with a planar thienothiophene-vinylene-thienothiophene linker. Under standard global AM 1.5 solar conditions, the JK-113-sensitized cell gave a short circuit photocurrent density (J(sc)) of 17.61 mA cm(-2), an open-circuit voltage (V(oc)) of 0.71 V, and a fill factor (FF) of 72%, corresponding to an overall conversion efficiency (eta) of 9.1%. The incident monochromatic photo-to-current conversion efficiency (IPCE) of JK-113 exceeds 80% over the spectral region from 400 to 640 nm, reaching its maximum of 93% at 475 nm. The band tails off toward 770 nm, contributing to the broad spectral light harvesting. Solar-cell devices based on the sensitizer JK-113 in conjunction with a volatile electrolyte and a solvent-free ionic liquid electrolyte gave high conversion efficiencies of 9.1% and 7.9%, respectively. The JK-113-based solar cell fabricated using a solvent-free ionic liquid electrolyte showed excellent stability under light soaking at 60 degrees C for 1000 h.

Stepwise Cosensitization of Nanocrystalline TiO2 Films Utilizing Al2O3 Layers in Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells

Keywords: aluminum oxide ; electron transfer ; hole transfer ; sensitizers ; titanium dioxide ; Efficient Co-Sensitization ; Organic Sensitizers ; Recombination Dynamics ; Charge Recombination ; Highly Efficient ; Blocking Layers ; Electrodes ; Dendrimers ; Cyanine Reference EPFL-ARTICLE-160552doi:10.1002/anie.200802852View record in Web of Science Record created on 2010-11-30, modified on 2016-08-09

A polymer gel electrolyte to achieve ≥6% power conversion efficiency with a novel organic dye incorporating a low-band-gap chromophore

A quasi-solid-state dye-sensitized solar cell with novel organic sensitizers incorporating a benzothiadiazole chromophore showed excellent long-term stability, which exhibited 10% decrease during the 1000 h light soaking; the optimized cell gave a short circuit photocurrent density of 12.03 mA cm−2, an open circuit voltage of 0.720 V and a fill factor of 0.76, corresponding to an overall conversion efficiency of 6.61% under standard global AM 1.5 solar conditions.

Molecular engineering of organic sensitizers containing p-phenylene vinylene unit for dye-sensitized solar cells.

Three organic sensitizers containing bis-dimethylfluorenyl amino donor and a cyanoacrylic acid acceptor bridged by p-phenylene vinylene unit were synthesized. The power conversion efficiency was quite sensitive to the length of bridged phenylene vinylene groups. A nanocrystalline TiO2 dye-sensitized solar cell was fabricated using three sensitizers. The maximum power conversion efficiency of JK-59 reached 7.02%.

Supersensitization of CdS Quantum Dots with a Near-Infrared Organic Dye: Toward the Design of Panchromatic Hybrid-Sensitized Solar Cells

The photoresponse of quantum dot solar cells (QDSCs) has been successfully extended to the near-IR (NIR) region by sensitizing nanostructured TiO(2)-CdS films with a squaraine dye (JK-216). CdS nanoparticles anchored on mesoscopic TiO(2) films obtained by successive ionic layer adsorption and reaction (SILAR) exhibit limited absorption below 500 nm with a net power conversion efficiency of ~1% when employed as a photoanode in QDSC. By depositing a thin barrier layer of Al(2)O(3), the TiO(2)-CdS films were further modified with a NIR absorbing squaraine dye. Quantum dot sensitized solar cells supersensitized with a squariand dye (JK-216) showed good stability during illumination with standard global AM 1.5 solar conditions, delivering a maximum overall power conversion efficiency (η) of 3.14%. Transient absorption and pulse radiolysis measurements provide further insight into the excited state interactions of squaraine dye with SiO(2), TiO(2), and TiO(2)/CdS/Al(2)O(3) films and interfacial electron transfer processes. The synergy of combining semiconductor quantum dots and NIR absorbing dye provides new opportunities to harvest photons from different regions of the solar spectrum.

Silole-spaced triarylamine derivatives as highly efficient organic sensitizers in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs)

Three new organic dyes that contain the dithienosilole (DTS) moiety as spacer have been synthesized and their photophysical/electrochemical properties, theoretical calculation and dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) performance have been investigated. The overall conversion efficiencies for DSSCs based on these dyes range from 6.73 to 7.50%, comparable to a (3–5′-[N,N-bis(9,9-dimethylfluorene-2-yl)phenyl]2,2′-bithiophene-5-yl}-2-cyanoacrylic acid (JK-2)-sensitized device (7.63%), fabricated and measured under the same experimental conditions. The DSSC constructed from one of the three compounds shows a higher open-circuit voltage (VOC) compared to those of the other two dye sensitized solar cells due to an increased electron lifetime (τe) in the conduction band of TiO2.

An Efficient Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell with an Organic Sensitizer Encapsulated in a Cyclodextrin Cavity†

Keywords: cyclodextrins ; dyes/pigments ; energy conversion ; host-guest systems ; solar cells ; Nanocrystalline Tio2 Films ; Recombination Dynamics ; Charge-Transfer ; Ruthenium Sensitizer ; Molecular Control ; Blocking Layers ; Dendrimers Reference EPFL-ARTICLE-159593doi:10.1002/anie.200902013View record in Web of Science Record created on 2010-11-30, modified on 2017-05-12