Mechanism of performance enhancement via fluorine doped titanium dioxide nanoparticles in dye sensitized solar cells

Abstract Fluorine doped anatase TiO 2 nanoparticles are synthesized by hydrothermal method and applied in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) as excellent photoelectrode material. The result shows that fluorine-doping can positively shift the conduction band of TiO 2 , thus enlarge the driving force for efficient electron injection, reduce the interfacial losses from the charge recombination and consequently facilitate the charge transfer. The conversion efficiency of DSCs with fluorine-doped TiO 2 electrodes is improved by 16.2% and results in a 23.1% photocurrent gain. This paper provides a comprehensive understanding on the behaviors of fluorine-doping TiO 2 in DSCs from the conduction band shift and the mechanism of electron injection, transfer and recombination and a promising strategy to explore high efficiency DSCs.

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