Highly soluble energy relay dyes for dye-sensitized solar cells

Margulis, George Y.; Lim, Bogyu; Hardin, Brian E.; Unger, Eva; Yum, Jun‐Ho; Feckl, Johann M.; Fattakhova‐Rohlfing, Dina; Bein, Thomas; Grätzel, Michaël; Sellinger, Alan; McGehee, Michael D.

doi:10.1039/c3cp51018b

Cited by 27 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 37 publications

(48 reference statements)

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“…8,9 Hardin et al 8 reported an unattached energy donor (ED) dissolved in electrolyte solution, excited by higher energy photons and efficiently transferring its excitation energy to a dye sensitizer (DS), which increases the absorption spectral bandwidth of the cell and improves the power conversion efficiency from 2.55 to 3.21%. However, the cell performance is decreased because of several factors: [8][9]19,21 (1) dynamic quenching by electrolytes (I 3 − ), (2) self-absorption between EDs and (3) the formation of aggregates between the ED and DS. We demonstrated that iQDs encapsulated by the nanofiber can overcome the problems described above and also can efficiently transfer energy to dye sensitizers, increasing the overall power conversion efficiency and durability of the DSC.…”

Section: Distribution Of Quantum Dots In Nanofibermentioning

confidence: 99%

“…If EDs are dissolved in electrolyte solution, 8 however, energy transfer from ED to DS should be decreased by the above two interactions. 21 In equation (1),…”

Section: Distribution Of Quantum Dots In Nanofibermentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In previous methods, EDs dissolved in electrolyte solution often suffer from several interactions, which changes their electronic character and finally causes the EDs to quench in the excited state before electron transfer can occur. 9 Moreover, iQDs encapsulated by the nanofiber can attenuate the effects of interactions such as dynamic quenching (iQD-electrolyte), 19,21 self-absorption (among iQDs) 4-7 and aggregate formation (iQD-ZnEP1), leading to an increase in the absorption of the cell, its durability and, consequently, the overall light-harvesting performance of the device.…”

Section: Distribution Of Quantum Dots In Nanofibermentioning

confidence: 99%

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Controlling the spatial distribution of quantum dots in nanofiber for light-harvesting devices

et al. 2015

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The ability to control inter-dot or inter-molecule spacing of functional moieties in solid-state devices has long been studied for both fundamental and technological reasons. In this study, we present a new strategy for controlling the distance between quantum dots (QDs) based on one-dimensional spatial confinement in a polymer nanofiber template. This reliable technique allows for the isolation of QDs at a sufficient distance in a thin film and retains their monomeric character, with distinct spectra from aggregates (~30-nm shift) and monoexponential photoluminescence decay, indicating the suppression of inter-dot interactions. We successfully developed light-harvesting devices by incorporating QDs in nanofibers as an auxiliary light harvester, improving the performance of these devices from 5.9 to 7.4%. This strategy offers a viable path of controlling the arrangements of various functional moieties in solid-state devices. NPG Asia Materials (2015) 7, e202; doi:10.1038/am.2015.76; published online 17 July 2015 INTRODUCTIONThe physicochemical properties of functional moieties in devices such as organic dyes, quantum dots (QDs), graphenes and other nanostructures are different from the properties of their aggregates, 1-7 which frequently deteriorate the performance of the optoelectronic devices (light-emitting diodes, lasers, solar cells, waveguides or photosensors). [8][9][10][11][12][13][14] For instance, QD light-emitting diodes or photovoltaic devices suffer from the inter-dot interactions of aggregates, which cause a spectral shift and a broadening in the photoluminescence of QDs as well as a decrease in the quantum yield. 10,13 Therefore, control of inter-dot spacing is critical in ensuring device performance. [8][9][10]13,15 Researchers have long sought methods to control the spatial distribution of functional moieties in devices and prevent the formation of aggregates, both for fundamental research and the potential technological applications. In solid-state films in particular, it has been challenging to increase film thickness while keeping functional moieties in the monomeric state.Here, we demonstrate a general strategy for controlling the distance between functional moieties based on one-dimensional spatial confinement in a polymeric nanofiber template. One key observation, shown both experimentally and computationally, is that as the radius of a nanofiber template becomes smaller, the distance between moieties increases, thus leading to substantial isolation of each dot. QDs were chosen as a representative functional moiety because they can be easily observed by electron microscopy and because they have a high quantum yield, excellent photostability and long intrinsic lifetime that is distinguishable from their inter-dot energy transfer time (50 ps-2 ns). 15,16 We have fabricated isolated QDs (iQDs) by confining QDs

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Section: Distribution Of Quantum Dots In Nanofibermentioning

confidence: 99%

“…If EDs are dissolved in electrolyte solution, 8 however, energy transfer from ED to DS should be decreased by the above two interactions. 21 In equation (1),…”

Section: Distribution Of Quantum Dots In Nanofibermentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Distribution Of Quantum Dots In Nanofibermentioning

confidence: 99%

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Controlling the spatial distribution of quantum dots in nanofiber for light-harvesting devices

et al. 2015

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“…Dye A was chosen after a literature survey on fluorophore structures thanks to its interesting optical properties and easy synthesis in view of a possible application in low‐cost down‐shifting polymers or as a co‐absorber . The simplest and cheapest way to obtain this dye is from the reaction between dansyl chloride and 6‐aminohexanoic acid, through a nucleophilic substitution between the chlorine and amine (Supporting Information).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Complementary dyes can be used in DSSCs to improve efficiency, the first one bound to titania, and the second one dispersed in the electrolyte to act as a complementary pigment (energy relay dyes), which mimics the photosynthetic process. The dispersion of DSSC dyes in LDHs allows their facile use in the melt blending extrusion of polymers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

High‐Throughput Preparation of New Photoactive Nanocomposites

et al. 2016

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New low-cost photoactive hybrid materials based on organic luminescent molecules inserted into hydrotalcite (layered double hydroxides; LDH) were produced, which exploit the high-throughput liquid-assisted grinding (LAG) method. These materials are conceived for applications in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) as a co-absorbers and in silicon photovoltaic (PV) panels to improve their efficiency as they are able to emit where PV modules show the maximum efficiency. A molecule that shows a large Stokes' shift was designed, synthesized, and intercalated into LDH. Two dyes already used in DSSCs were also intercalated to produce two new nanocomposites. LDH intercalation allows the stability of organic dyes to be improved and their direct use in polymer melt blending. The prepared nanocomposites absorb sunlight from UV to visible and emit from blue to near-IR and thus can be exploited for light-energy management. Finally one nanocomposite was dispersed by melt blending into a poly(methyl methacrylate)-block-poly(n-butyl acrylate) copolymer to obtain a photoactive film.

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