Enhanced Conversion Efficiency of Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells by Optimization of Photoanode Modification Process

Abstract

Surface modification of nanoporous TiO2 photoanodes was conducted by simple dipping process using aqueous lithium hydroxide (LiOH) solution at varied temperatures and dipping time, and the modified photoanodes were applied to dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). By the optimization of surface-modification temperature (40 °C) and time (10 min), DSSC with LiOH-modified TiO2 layer showed a considerable improvement (8.19%) of about 20% in power conversion efficiency due to an enhanced open circuit voltage and a fill factor, compared to that (6.85%) of reference device with bare TiO2 layer. The enhancement was mainly attributed to negative shifts of conduction band edges of TiO2 by LiOH modification. Copyright © 2013 American Scientific Publishers.