Investigation of TiO2 surface modification with [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid for titania/polymer hybrid solar cells

Teng Ma, Jinyu Zhang, Ryota Kojima, Daisuke Tadaki, Yasuo Kimura*, Michio Niwano

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

4 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

We have investigated modification of TiO2 surfaces with [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyric acid (PCBA) used for fabrication of TiO 2/poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT) hybrid solar cells. The surface modification process was monitored using in-situ infrared absorption spectroscopy in the multiple-internal reflection geometry (MIR-IRAS). IR data showed that longer exposure of TiO2 surfaces to an organic solution of PCBA leads to undesirable formation of a physisorbed PCBA overlayer that cannot be removed by rinsing the surface in pure solvent. We found that ultrasonic cleaning of the TiO2 surface removed most of the physisorbed PCBA molecules. Modification of TiO2 surfaces with PCBA molecules drastically increased the short circuit current of TiO 2/P3HT-based hybrid solar cells, which is ascribed to improved charge separation efficiency at the TiO2/P3HT interface. The physisorbed PCBA molecules decreased the open circuit voltage and the fill factor. We demonstrated that the power conversion efficiency is improved by ultrasonic cleaning following PCBA deposition.

Original languageEnglish
Article number112301
JournalJapanese Journal of Applied Physics, Part 1: Regular Papers and Short Notes and Review Papers
Volume52
Issue number11 PART 1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Nov 2013
Externally publishedYes

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