Improving the efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cell via tuning the Au plasmons inlaid TiO2nanotube array photoanode

Jia Chen, Min Guo, Haijun Su, Jun Zhang, Lin Liu, Haitao Huang, Keyu Xie

Research output: Journal article publicationJournal articleAcademic researchpeer-review

10 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Plasmonic enhancement is an effective method to improve the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The size and amount of plasmon play key roles in plasmonic effect; however, the report on the relationship between morphology and processing of plasmon is rare. In this work, a series of Au nanoparticles (NPs) inlaid into TiO2nanotube (NT) based photoanodes have been synthesized through tuning HAuCl4solution concentration and irradiation time during the photoreduction process. Meanwhile, the optical and photoelectrical properties of these plasmonic DSSCs have also been verified. The results demonstrate that the optimized plasmonic DSSC (irradiation time: 5 min, solution concentration: 0.5 mM) showed a 19.0% improvement of PCE, compared to the reference DSSC without Au NPs. The improved PCE is mainly attributed to the enhanced photocurrent generated by surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect of small sized Au NPs as well as light scattering effect of large sized particles. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1139-1149
Number of pages11
JournalJournal of Applied Electrochemistry
Volume48
Issue number10
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Oct 2018

Keywords

  • Au nanoparticles
  • Dye-sensitized solar cells
  • Photoreduction
  • Plasmonic enhancement

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • General Chemical Engineering
  • Electrochemistry
  • Materials Chemistry

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