Issue 24, 2015

Conical-shaped titania nanotubes for optimized light management in DSSCs reach back-side illumination efficiencies > 8%

Abstract

In the present work, we introduce the anodic growth of conical shaped TiO2 nanotube arrays. These titania nanocones provide a scaffold for dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) structures with significantly improved photon management, providing an optimized absorption profile compared with conventional cylindrical nanotube arrays. Finite difference time domain (FDTD) modelling demonstrates a drastically changed power-absorption characteristic over the tube length. When used in a back-side illumination DSSC configuration, nanocone structures can reach over 60% higher solar cell conversion efficiency (η) than conventional tubes. The resulting η ≈ 8% represents one of the highest reported values for Grätzel type DSSCs used under back-side illumination.

Graphical abstract: Conical-shaped titania nanotubes for optimized light management in DSSCs reach back-side illumination efficiencies > 8%

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Communication
Submitted
18 Apr 2015
Accepted
18 May 2015
First published
18 May 2015

J. Mater. Chem. A, 2015,3, 12603-12608

Conical-shaped titania nanotubes for optimized light management in DSSCs reach back-side illumination efficiencies > 8%

S. So, A. Kriesch, U. Peschel and P. Schmuki, J. Mater. Chem. A, 2015, 3, 12603 DOI: 10.1039/C5TA02834E

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