Structural parameters controlling the performance of organized mesoporous TiO2 films in dye sensitized solar cells

Titanium dioxide films with organized mesoporous structure were investigated as photoanodes in dye sensitized solar cells. High-quality films were grown on FTO supports by implementing the protocol of supramolecular templating with an amphiphilic triblock copolymer, Pluronic P123. Thicker films were obtained by repeated dip-coating and calcination cycles of up to 10 layers. The TiO2 films were crack-free, optically transparent, and had thicknesses exceeding 2 μm, while still preserving the organized mesoporous morphology. Their roughness factors, determined from Kr-adsorption isotherms, exceeded 500. The sorption of N-3 and N-719 dyes was fitted to a surface coverage of 0.31 molecules/nm2, which is about one third of the ideal dye loading assumed for the (1 0 1) anatase face. The solar performance of multilayer films sensitized with N-945 dye scaled linearly for 1–3 layer films, but approached a plateau for thicker films.

Graphical abstractHigh-quality TiO2 films were grown on F-doped SnO2 conducting glass by implementing the protocol of supramolecular templating with an amphiphilic triblock copolymer, Pluronic P123. The TiO2 films were crack-free, optically transparent, and had thicknesses exceeding 2 μm, while still preserving the organized mesoporous morphology.Figure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide