Synthesis of co-doped Yb3+- Er3+:ZrO2 upconversion nanoparticles and their applications in enhanced photovoltaic properties of quantum dot sensitized solar cells

In this work, we explore the development of Yb3+-Er3+ co-doped ZrO2 nanoparticles to coat on TiO2/CdS/ ZnS configuration to boost the photoconversion efficiency of quantum dot sensitized solar cells. Photovoltaic measurement results indicate that the Yb3+-Er3+:ZrO2 layer on TiO2/CdS/ZnS configuration offer a remarkable enhancement in open circuit voltage (593 mV) and fill factor (68.7%). This results proves that it is possible to increase the 55% of photoconversion efficiency (3.0%) in the CdS-based QDSSCs effectively by incorporating the Yb3+-Er3+:ZrO2 layer. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements confirm further the suppressed charge recombination process after coating with the Yb3+-Er3+:ZrO2 layer. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.