Plasmonic enhancement of the properties of Dye-sensitized solar cells by Au nanocubes in composite photoanode

A series of TiO2 nanocomposite photoanodes with different amounts of Au nanocubes are prepared by a ball milling method and applied to assemble a series of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The gold nanocubes demonstrate unique optical properties of the high photoluminescence quantum yield. The influences of the Au nanocubes on the performance of the photoanode and dye-sensitized solar cells were investigated. Studies demonstrated that by introducing the Au nanocubes, the intensity of the light-absorption spectra of the photoanodes and the photon capture ability of the dye molecules are significantly increased. The optimal performance with a Jsc of 15.32 mA∙cm⁻² and PCE of 6.708% are obtained in the DSSCs with the hybrid composite photoanodes, higher than those of the conventional DSSCs (based on pure TiO2 photoanodes), respectively. The significant improvements in the properties of the optimal DSSCs are mainly attributed to the increase of the light-absorption of the dye due to the localized surface plasmon resonance.