Solution processed ZnO rectangular prism as an effective photoanode material for dye sensitized solar cells

摘要

Well crystalline ZnO rectangular prism (ZnO-RP) nanomaterials were synthesized by a low temperature solution process and employed as photoanode materials for the dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Synthesized nanomaterials featured the define rectangular prism morphology with the average thickness of ～ 100 nm and possessed typical hexagonal wurtzite structure. ZnO-RP photoanode presented a reasonable conversion efficiency (η) of ～3.3% along with high short circuit current (J_(sc)) of ～8.91 mA/cm~2, open circuit voltage (V_(oc)) of ～0.725 V and fill factor (FF) of ～0.51 in DSSC. The rectangular shape of ZnO could provide high surface to volume ratio for dye absorption and light harvesting efficiency, which significantly resulted in high J_(sc) and conversion efficiency of DSSC.