Electrochemical Characterization of Hybrid Semiconductor-Based Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

In this study, the TiO2/V2O5 hybrid semiconductors were prepared by mixing TiO2 and V2O5, and a subsequent smash process to reduce the recombination of electron and improve the efficiency of solar cells. Dye-sensitized solar cells were constructed using the resultant hybrid semiconductor, and their electrochemical properties were also investigated. The photocurrent-voltage curve obtained with the cells indicated a significant increase in the efficiency from 2.9 to 5.7% by the factor of 2 compared to the result obtained only with TiO2. It is believed that the introduction of V2O5 effectively transport electrons in the TiO2 conduction band to FTO glass and suppress recombination with the dye and/or the electrolyte, thus yielding an efficient performance of the dye sensitized solar cell. The impedance values also indicated a decrease of resistance in the interface of TiO2/dye/electrolyte supporting the constructive contributions of the smashed TiO2/V2O5 hybrid semiconductors for the efficiency.