Colloidal Cu2ZnSn(S1-x,Sex)4-Au nano-heterostructures for inorganic perovskite photovoltaic applications as photocathode alternative

Shuai Ma; Lifeng Dong; Hongzhou Dong; Jie Wang; Yingjie Chen; Beili Pang; Jianguang Feng; Liyan Yu; Mei Zhao

doi:10.1016/j.jcis.2018.12.100

Colloidal Cu₂ZnSn(S_1-_x,Se_x)₄-Au nano-heterostructures for inorganic perovskite photovoltaic applications as photocathode alternative

J Colloid Interface Sci. 2019 Mar 15:539:598-608. doi: 10.1016/j.jcis.2018.12.100. Epub 2018 Dec 29.

Authors

Shuai Ma¹, Lifeng Dong², Hongzhou Dong³, Jie Wang³, Yingjie Chen³, Beili Pang³, Jianguang Feng³, Liyan Yu⁴, Mei Zhao³

Affiliations

¹ School of Mathematics & Physics, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266061, PR China. Electronic address: shuai.ma@qust.edu.cn.
² College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266042, PR China; Department of Physics, Hamline University, St. Paul 55104, USA. Electronic address: donglifeng@qust.edu.cn.
³ College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266042, PR China.
⁴ College of Materials Science and Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao 266042, PR China. Electronic address: liyanyu@qust.edu.cn.

PMID: 30611055
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2018.12.100

Abstract

We concretely report feasible synthesis procedures of colloidal Cu₂ZnSn(S_1-_x,Se_x)₄-Au (CZTSSe-Au) nano-heterostructured composites, and creatively employ them as the counter electrodes (CEs) of all-solid-state solar cells with inorganic CsSnI_2.95F_0.05 perovskite hole conductor. Acquired optical characterization indicates that integration of noble metal nanoparticles with cuprum-chalcogenide could heighten light absorption within visible-band due to localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) generated by Au, and the forbidden gap of nanocomposites gets adjustment accordingly. It is demonstrated that this novel photocathode alternative with favorable conductivity can not only match the energy level within the device band structure construction, but also restrain recombination so that accelerate charge transfer and extraction occurring on the photocathode. The photocurrent and photoelectric conversion efficiency (PCE) of cells conjugating CZTS-Au photocathodes turn to be respectively 43% and 25% higher than those using pure CZTS. Moreover, it has been demonstrated that CZTS-Au, coupling very well with inorganic perovskite, owns comparable electrocatalytic performance and even higher output photocurrent with respect to platinum CEs, which portends a potential substitution for conventional costly photocathodes. A comprehensive analysis on impedance spectroscopy data is subsequently carried out for the sake of deep understanding charge accumulation and transfer response at CsSnI_2.95F_0.05/CE interface, attempting to orient further optimization of device performance.

Keywords: Cu(2)ZnSn(S(1-)(x),Se(x))(4)-Au; Impedance spectroscopy; Localized surface plasmon resonance; Perovskite; Photocathode; Solar cell.