Effect of urchin-like gold nanoparticles in organic thin-film solar cells

In this study, urchin-like gold nanoparticles (UL-AuNPs) are used in the fabrication of organic thin-film solar cells (OSCs). UL-AuNPs, which have gold nanothorns on their surface, enhance light accumulation by acting as light-trapping materials. This is due to the enhanced electric field and light...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inPhysical chemistry chemical physics : PCCP Vol. 18; no. 27; pp. 18500 - 18506
Main Authors Pangdam, Apichat, Nootchanat, Supeera, Ishikawa, Ryousuke, Shinbo, Kazunari, Kato, Keizo, Kaneko, Futao, Thammacharoen, Chuchaat, Ekgasit, Sanong, Baba, Akira
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published England 21.07.2016
Subjects
Electric fields
Gold
Nanoparticles
Nanostructure
Photovoltaic cells
Solar cells
Spectra
Thin films
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:In this study, urchin-like gold nanoparticles (UL-AuNPs) are used in the fabrication of organic thin-film solar cells (OSCs). UL-AuNPs, which have gold nanothorns on their surface, enhance light accumulation by acting as light-trapping materials. This is due to the enhanced electric field and light scattering attributed to the nanothorns on the surface of the nanoparticles. UL-AuNPs were incorporated into a poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) ( PSS) thin-film layer of organic thin-film solar cells (OSCs). UV-vis spectra, atomic force microscopy (AFM) images, current density versus voltage properties, and the impedance spectra of the fabricated devices were recorded at various concentrations of UL-AuNPs. We found that the efficiency of the OSCs with UL-AuNPs was not only higher than that of a reference cell without nanoparticles but also higher than that of OSCs with spherical AuNPs. Finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) simulation indicated that the electric field around the UL-AuNPs increased due to the presence of nanothorns.
Bibliography:ObjectType-Article-1
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-2
content type line 23
ISSN:1463-9076
1463-9084
DOI:10.1039/c6cp02373h