Effect of Nanocrystalline TiO₂ Film Thickness on the Photovoltaic Performance of Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) nanoparticles [TNPs] were prepared by hydrothermal method from aqueous solution using titanium (IV) isopropoxide (TTIP) as precursor. The prepared TNPs were characterized by number of techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscope (SEM) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). Dye-sensitized solar cells based on prepared TNPs films with different thicknesses (10–18 m) were fabricated by doctor blading method. The effect of thickness on the photoelectric conversion efficiency of the as-fabricated DSSCs was investigated. We could obtain an optimum value of 2.55% with 14 μm thickness of the film. The results show that TiO₂ thickness has an effect on the electron transport in the DSSCs.