Electron transport in heteroatom-doped graphene quantum dots for TiO2-based dye-sensitized solar cells
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2025
Abstract
Graphene quantum dots (GQDs) hold promise as co-sensitizers in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) due to their excellent light-harvesting capabilities. However, their intrinsic limitations in electron transport can hinder overall device performance. This study investigates the impact of heteroatom-doping with nitrogen (N), fluorine (F), and sulfur (S) on the performance of GQDs as co-sensitizers for N719 dye in DSSCs. The heteroatom-doped GQDs (NFS-GQDs) enhance light harvesting compared to pristine GQDs, extending absorption into the UV region. Photoluminescence quenching data confirms efficient electron injection from both GQDs and NFS-GQDs to the TiO2 conduction band, exhibiting superior electron injection efficiency. Among the co-sensitized cells, 20 wt. % doping level achieves the highest power conversion efficiency of 4.33 %. Besides, electron transport and electronic structure were investigated in detail to understand the interaction of the TiO2/NFS-GQDs+N719 interface. The findings suggest that NFS-doping GQDs offer a promising strategy for developing efficient co- sensitizers for DSSCs.
Keywords
Electron injection, Energy, NFS-GQD, Recombination
Divisions
sch_ecs
Funders
Ministry of Higher Education, Malaysia, through the Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS) (FRGS/1/2023/STG05/UNITEN/02/2)
Publication Title
Electrochimica Acta
Volume
510
Publisher
Elsevier
Publisher Location
THE BOULEVARD, LANGFORD LANE, KIDLINGTON, OXFORD OX5 1GB, ENGLAND