Publication date: 11th March 2026
Spiro-OMeTAD is widely regarded as a benchmark and reference hole-transport material (HTM) for solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells (ss-DSSCs)[1]. However, excessive oxidation of spiro-OMeTAD (formation of spiro²⁺/³⁺/⁴⁺ species) caused by uncontrolled exposure to oxygen significantly limits the hole mobility within the HTM layer, thereby limiting the device performance. Consequently, precise control over the oxidation state of spiro-OMeTAD using an oxygen-free chemical doping strategy is crucial for achieving efficient ss-DSSCs. Here, we report a rapid and controlled oxidation of spiro-OMeTAD in solution using 1,1,2,2-tetrachloroethane (t-CE) as a p-type chemical dopant[2]. Upon UV activation at 400 nm, t-CE enables the generation of spiro⁺ species by adjusting the irradiation time and dopant concentration. This approach avoids conventional slow ambient oxidation, allowing rapid and reproducible device fabrication. As a result, ss-DSSCs fabricated with the XY1b dye and t-CE-doped spiro-OMeTAD exhibit an enhanced power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 6.24%, compared to 5.94% for control devices without t-CE. Dye regeneration efficiency and photo-induced Stark effect were systematically investigated using photoinduced absorption (PIA) spectroscopy[3]. Furthermore, the balance between charge transport and interfacial electron–hole recombination was found to depend strongly on the concentration of spiro⁺ species participating in transport kinetics. Optimization of this balance leads to improved device performance, particularly under low-intensity indoor lighting conditions and realized the device PCE up to ~15%.
This work has been supported by the INDYE project (2024-00562), funded by Vinnova (M-ERA.NET 3).
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