Nano and Molecular Scale Engineering of Sensitized Solar Cells

Objective

To develop and investigate the next generation of sensitized solar cells with high efficiency, low cost, high stability and green impacts.

 

Approach

Solution assembly and characterization of semiconductor nanostructures with size tunability, good crystallinity, desired surface to volume ratio, interfacial compatibility, and hierarchical complexity;  Molecular design and synthesis of metal-free donor-¤-bridge-acceptor sensitizers.

 

Impact

We have proposed a conceptually new quantum well sensitizer for semiconductor sensitized solar cells; this has been nicely demonstrated by developing through solution processing a quasi-quantum well structure supported on tetrapods.

We have developed a linker-seeding chemical bath deposition method for uniformly anchoring quantum dots on mesoscopic TiO2 surfaces, leading to much improved cell efficiency.

We have developed a new family of metal-free organic donor-¤-bridge-acceptor sensitizers based on a fulvene donor with promising cell efficiencies.

 

Contact

Prof Shihe Yang
Professor of Chemistry
Email: chsyang@ust.hk