Colloidal semiconductor nanowires (NWs) are emerging as a promising active-layer material for generation-three photovoltaics. Similar to their nanocrystal quantum dot (NQD) counterparts, they offer the possibility to boost performance in a sensitized solar cell configuration by eliminating the problem of absorber-dye saturation. Compared to NQDs, however, NWs offer the additional advantage of providing a natural conduit for charge transport as a result of their asymmetric structure, while maintaining the solution-phase chemical processibility and quantum-confinement effects associated with 0-D structures. Here we describe a novel NW-sensitized solar cell fabricated using layer-by-layer deposition of CdSe NWs that are chemically linked to TiO2 nanocrystals, with a sulfide/polysulfide redox electrolyte and a platinum counter electrode. We assess the impact of device nano-to-mesoscale structure on performance and directly compare NW-sensitized devices with �conventional� NQD-sensitized devices. Finally, we correlate NW optical properties (modified by NW shelling during synthesis or post-fabrication) with device performance.

Colloidal CdSe nanowire-sensitized solar cells: Nano-to-mesoscale performance parameters

245th National Meeting (2013)

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