NDLI: Cost-effective and morphology controllable PVP based highly efficient CuS counter electrodes for high-efficiency quantum dot-sensitized solar cells

Content Provider	World Health Organization (WHO)-Global Index Medicus
Author	Kim, Soo-kyoung Myung-sik, Lee Rao, S. Srinivasa Kim, Hee-je Gopi, Chandu V. V. M. Venkata-haritha, M.
Description	Author Affiliation: Kim HJ ( School of Electrical Engineering, Pusan National University, Gumjeong-Ku, Jangjeong-Dong, Busan 609-735, South Korea. naga5673@gmail.com.)
Abstract	Currently, copper sulfide (CuS) is the most commonly used counter electrode (CE) in high-efficiency quantum dot-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs) because of its superior electrocatalytic activity in the presence of polysulfide electrolyte. For the first time, CuS thin films were prepared by a facile chemical bath deposition method with different concentrations of polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) and directly used as CEs in QDSSCs without any further post treatment. The quantum dot photoanode with the optimized 0.25 mM PVP-based CuS CE exhibits higher short circuit current density $(J_{sc}),$ open circuit voltage $(V_{oc}),$ fill factor (FF), and power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 17.57 mA $cm^{−2},$ 0.578 V, 0.514, and 5.22%, respectively, which are much higher values than those of a bare CuS CE $(J_{sc}:$ 12.36 mA $cm^{−2};$ $V_{oc}:$ 0.591 V; FF: 0.436; PCE: 3.18%) and Pt CE $(J_{sc}:$ 11.25 mA $cm^{−2};$ $V_{oc}:$ 0.464 V; FF: 0.296; PCE: 1.54%) under one-sun illumination (AM 1.5 G, 100 mW $cm^{−2}).$ Moreover, the 0.25 mM PVP-based CuS CE produces a charge-transfer resistance of only 4.39 Ω with the aqueous polysulfide electrolyte commonly applied in QDSSCs. This value is several orders of magnitude lower than that of a typical Pt electrode (69.75 Ω) and bare CuS electrode (9.27 Ω). This enhancement is mainly attributed to the improved morphology of the 0.25 mM CuS CE with high catalytic activity, which plays a main role in the reduction processes of the oxidized polysulfide electrolyte, as well as the increased sulfur atomic percentage with Cu vacancies. Cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and Tafel polarization were performed to study the underlying reasons behind the efficient CE performance.
ISSN	14779226
Issue Number	25
Journal	Dalton Trans.
Volume Number	44
e-ISSN	13645447
Language	English
Publisher	Royal Society of Chemistry
Publisher Date	2015-07-07
Publisher Place	Great Britain (UK)
Access Restriction	Subscribed
Subject Keyword	Chemistry
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Inorganic Chemistry

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