Mixed halide perovskites CH3NH3PbBr3-xClx (x = 0.6-1.2) with different compositions of halogens exhibit drastically changed optical properties. In particular, the thin films prepared with these perovskites demonstrate extraordinary photoluminescence emission intensities and prolonged recombination lifetimes up to 446 ns, which are desirable for light emitting and photovoltaic applications.

a b s t r a c tA TiO 2 organic sol was synthesised for the preparation of a compact TiO 2 layer on fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) glass by a dip-coating technique. The resultant thin film was used for the fabrication of dyesensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The compact layer typically has a thickness of ca. 110 nm as indicated by its SEM, and consists of anatase as confirmed by the XRD pattern. Compared with the traditional DSSCs without this compact layer, the solar energy-to-electricity conversion efficiency, short-circuit current and open-circuit potential of the DSSCs with the compact layer were improved by 33.3%, 20.3%, and 10.2%, respectively. This can be attributed to the merits brought by the compact layer. It can effectively improve adherence of TiO 2 to FTO surface, provide a larger TiO 2 /FTO contact area, and reduce the electron recombination by blocking the direct contact between the redox electrolyte and the conductive FTO surface.Crown

ZnO nanowire networks featuring excellent charge transport and light scattering properties are grown in situ within TiO(2) films. The resultant TiO(2) /ZnO composites, used as photoanodes, remarkably enhance the overall conversion efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) by 26.9%, compared to that of benchmark TiO(2) films.

Anatase TiO(2) microspheres with exposed mirror-like plane {001} facets were successfully synthesized via a facile hydrothermal process. The photoanode composed of TiO(2) microsphere top layer shows an improved DSSCs efficiency owing to the superior light scattering effect of microspheres and excellent light reflecting ability of the mirror-like plane {001} facets.

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A titanium organic sol was synthesized for the modification of conventional porous TiO 2 photoanodes for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). As a result, a compact thin TiO 2 film was superimposed on the porous TiO 2 structure as an efficient electron transport network, covering bare conducting substrate surface (FTO) and bridging gaps between TiO 2 nanoparticles, which was confirmed by scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). Dark current measurement suggested that the sol modified photoanode had a remarkably slower recombination rate of the photoelectrons due to the reduced bare FTO surface in comparison with the porous photoanode. The network facilitates the electron transfer in the DSSC process by removing the dead ends of electron pathways, connecting gaps along the electron pathways, and physically enlarging electron pathways, which can be demonstrated by the performance improvement of photocurrent and open-circuit potential. Consequently, the overall energy conversion efficiency of the DSSC was significantly enhanced by 28% after this simple and low-cost organic sol modification. The significant performance improvements observed from the organic sol modified DSSCs suggest that the proposed modification method is a promising alternative to the traditional TiCl 4 modification method.

Nitrogen-doped ZnO bundle-like nanoparticles were prepared by heating ZnOHF precursor at different temperatures under an ammonia atmosphere. ZnOHF gradually transformed to N-ZnO with the increase of the heating temperature, and the as-prepared N-ZnO nanoparticles preserved the original morphologies of ZnOHF at moderate heating temperature. The N-ZnO nanoparticles demonstrated drastically enhanced absorption in the visible region compared with the commercial ZnO and N-ZnO derived from commercial ZnO. Theoretical calculations indicated that the contribution of nitrogen to the top of the valence band (VB) of ZnO plays the major role of extending the absorption of ZnO to the visible region. The as-prepared N-ZnO showed high photocatalytic activity for the visible-light-induced water oxidation, and the activity can be further greatly enhanced by loading IrO2 cocatalyst. To our knowledge, this is the first report of realizing photocatalytic water oxidation on non-metal-doped ZnO under visible light without applied bias, thus adding new value to the band gap engineering of benchmark ZnO for efficient solar energy utilization.

Mesoscopic perovskite solar cells using stable CH3 NH3 PbI2 Br as a light absorber and low-cost poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) as hole-transporting layer were fabricated, and a power conversion efficiency of 6.64 % was achieved. The partial substitution of iodine with bromine in the perovskite led to remarkably prolonged charge carrier lifetime. Meanwhile, the replacement of conventional thick spiro-MeOTAD layer with a thin P3HT layer has significantly reduced the fabrication cost. The solar cells retained their photovoltaic performance well when they were exposed to air without any encapsulation, presenting a favorable stability. The combination of CH3 NH3 PbI2 Br and P3HT may render a practical and cost-effective solid-state photovoltaic system. The superior stability of CH3 NH3 PbI2 Br is also promising for other photoconversion applications.