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Ultrathin ALD coating on TiO2 photoanodes with enhanced quantum dot loading and charge collection in quantum dots sensitized solar cells

超薄ALD层包覆TiO2光阳极增加量子点太阳能电池的量子点吸附量和电荷收集效率

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Abstract

TiO2 nanocrystals are widely used in photoanodes for quantum dot solar cells (QDSCs) owing to their chemical stability and suitable energy band structure. However, surface defects and grain boundaries of TiO2 nanocrystals photoanodes allow high surface charge recombination, which limits the performance of QDSCs. In this work, an ultrathin TiO2 layer is introduced to the surface of TiO2 photoanodes by atomic layer deposition (ALD). The ultrathin layer not only reduces the surface defects of TiO2 nanoparticles and strengthens the connection between adjacent nanoparticles to suppress the charge recombination for improving the electron collection efficiency (ηcc), but also increases the surface energy of photoanodes to load more quantum dots (QDs) for enhancing the light harvesting efficiency (LHE). As a result, the solar cell based on CdS/CdSe QDs with ALD treatment exhibits an efficiency of 5.07% that is much higher than that of the cells without modification (4.03%).

摘要

TiO2纳米晶体具有稳定的化学性质和合适的能带结构, 因而被广泛应用在量子点太阳能电池的光阳极材料中. 但是, 其较多的表面缺陷 和颗粒边界引起的严重复合限制了电池效率. 本文利用原子层沉积法(ALD)在TiO2光阳极膜上沉积一层超薄TiO2层. 实验结果表明, 这层超 薄TiO2层不仅减少了表面缺陷, 改善了颗粒间的连接性, 阻止了复合的发生, 提高了电子收集效率, 而且通过表面能的提升, 量子点的吸附量 增加, 光捕获效率(LHE)也得以提高. 因此, 基于ALD修饰的TiO2膜制备的太阳能电池的效率达5.07%, 明显优于没有ALD 修饰的电池(4.03%).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Advanced Materials and Technology, University of Science and Technology Beijing, Beijing, 100083, China

    Ting Shen  (沈婷), Jianjun Tian  (田建军), Bo Li  (李波) & Guozhong Cao  (曹国忠)

  2. Department of Materials and Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, 98195-2120, USA

    Guozhong Cao  (曹国忠)

Authors
  1. Ting Shen  (沈婷)
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  2. Jianjun Tian  (田建军)
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  3. Bo Li  (李波)
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  4. Guozhong Cao  (曹国忠)
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Jianjun Tian  (田建军) or Guozhong Cao  (曹国忠).

Additional information

Ting Shen is a PhD candidate in Advanced Material and Technology Institute, University of Science and Technology Beijing. Her research is focused on interfacial modification of multi-component quantum dot and its photovoltaic properties.

Jianjun Tian is a professor in Advanced Material and Technology Institute, University of Science and Technology Beijing. His current research is focused on quantum dot sensitized solar cells and perovskite solar cells.

Guozhong Cao is a Boeing Steiner Professor ofMaterials Science and Engineering, Professor of Chemical Engineering, and Adjunct Professor of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Washington. He has published more than 300 papers, 7 books and 4 proceedings. His recent research is mainly focused on solar cells, lithium-ion batteries, supercapacitors, and hydrogen storage.

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Shen, T., Tian, J., Li, B. et al. Ultrathin ALD coating on TiO2 photoanodes with enhanced quantum dot loading and charge collection in quantum dots sensitized solar cells. Sci. China Mater. 59, 833–841 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40843-016-5066-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40843-016-5066-y

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