Effect of solvent choice on the performance of thick-film dye sensitized solar cells

Fahd Rajab^a

^aNajran University, P O Box 1988 Engineering Building, Najran, 11001, Saudi Arabia

International Conference on Hybrid and Organic Photovoltaics
Proceedings of International Conference on Hybrid and Organic Photovoltaics 2015 (HOPV15)

Roma, Italy, 2015 May 11th - 13th

Organizer: Filippo De Angelis

Poster, Fahd Rajab, 327
Publication date: 5th February 2015

Anatase titania films with a thickness of up to 20 µm and deposited over a fluorine-doped tin-oxide substrate are impregnated with ruthenium dyes N-719 and N-749 using dip and supercritical-fluid methods for the purpose of fabricating dye-sensitized solar cell devices. The dyes are dissolved in different solvent mixtures, including supercritical carbon dioxide, as well as combinations of more traditional solvents including mixtures of acetonitrile, and t-butanol. Analytical studies included SEM and thin-film analysis to measure the titania film thickness, as well as UV visible spectra, current-voltage device characterizations, open-circuit voltage decay measurements to assess electron lifetime, as well as energy conversion efficiency and quantum efficiency measurements. A significant result is that using the dye N-749 in a solvent that includes supercritical carbon dioxide leads to energy conversion efficiencies that are higher for devices with a thick 20-µm semiconductor film than for the case of devices with thinner films, including the 10 µm film thickness that is traditionally considered an upper threshold. The supercritical-fluid method for the N-719 dye also enabled shorter impregnation duration than more conventional classical dip methods.

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