Silicon nanoparticles/pedot-pss nanocomposite as an efficient counter electrode for dye-sensitized solar cells

A novel inorganic/organic nanocomposite film composed of Si nanoparticles (NPs) and poly-(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly (styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT-PSS) is obtained from a simple mechanical mixture of Si NPs powder and aqueous PEDOT-PSS solution. Employing this composite film as a counter electrode, dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) exhibits an efficiency of 5.7% and a fill factor of 0.51, which are much higher than these of DSSC using pristine PEDOT-PSS electrode (2.9% and 0.25, respectively). The improvements in the photovoltaic performance of the former are primarily derived from improved electrocatalytic performance of the electrode, as evidenced by electrochemical measurements, the composite electrode has lower impedance and higher electrocatalytic activity when in comparison with pristine PEDOT-PSS electrode. These improvements are primarily deriving from the increased electrochemical surface by the addition of Si NPs. The characteristics of Si NPs/PEDOT-PSS composite counter electrode reveal its potential for the use of low-cost and stable Pt-free counter electrode materials. In addition, the results achieved in this work also provide a facile and efficient approach to improve the photovoltaic performance of DSSCs using PEDOT-PSS electrodes.