Surface modification of TiO2 photoanodes with In3+ using a simple soaking technique for enhancing the efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells

Effect of preparation conditions on the properties of nano ZnO powders during ultrasonic assisted direct precipitation process

Transparent conductive thin films (TCO) are widely used for their excellent photoelectric properties. To prepare high-quality ZnO targets, starting with the original ZnO powder is necessary. This paper aims to explore the basic technology and method of ultrasonic-assisted direct precipitation for mass production of ZnO powder and to analyze the effects of factors such as precipitating agent, surfactant, calcination temperature, and solvent on the powder's morphology, particle size, and crystallinity. The study found that the type and amount of precipitants and surfactants affect the powder's morphology and dispersibility, while calcination temperature mainly affects the powder's morphology and crystallinity. The ethanol content in the solvent mainly affects the grain size. After testing different variables, the optimal conditions for preparing spherical ZnO powder were found to be using (NH4)2·CO3 as the precipitant, adding 3% wt of PEG-400 and 3% wt of TEA at a calcination temperature of 320°C and a 60% ethanol solvent. This resulted in a smooth surface, uniform particle size distribution, good dispersibility, high crystallinity, and particle sizes between 26-32nm.

Formation and Characterization of Stable TiO2/CuxO-Based Solar Cells

According to increasing demand for energy, PV cells seem to be one of the best answers for human needs. Considering features such as availability, low production costs, high stability, etc., metal oxide semiconductors (MOS) are a focus of attention for many scientists. Amongst MOS, TiO2 and CuxO seem to be promising materials for obtaining an effective photoconversion effect. In this paper, specific investigation, aimed at the manufacturing of the complete photovoltaic structure based on this concept is described in detail. A set of samples manufactured by DC magnetron sputtering, with various process parameters, is characterized by morphology comparison, layer structure and material composition investigation, and finally by the obtained photovoltaic parameters. Based on SEM studies, it was established that the films are deposited uniformly and complete their formation; without clearly defined faces, the conglomerates of the film grow individually. These are areas with a uniform structure and orientation of atoms. The sizes of conglomerates are in a normal direction range from 20 to 530 nm and increase with film thickness. The film thickness was in the range from 318 to 1654 nm, respectively. The I-V study confirms the photovoltaic behavior of thin film solar cells. The open-circuit voltage (Voc) and short-circuit current density (Jsc) values of the photovoltaic devices ranged from 1.5 to 300 mV and from 0.45 to 7.26 µA/cm3, respectively, which corresponds to the maximum efficiency at the level of 0.01%. Specific analysis of the junction operation on the basis of characteristics flow, Rs, and Rsh values is delivered.