Morphologic Characterization of Anodic Titania Nanotube Arrays for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Abstract

We report morphologic characterization of the anodic titanium oxide (ATO) films with highly-ordered titania (TiO(2)) nanotube (NT) arrays grown perpendicularly to a titanium (Ti) foil. The length of the ATO arrays was controlled by various electrolytes and anodic periods at a constant applied voltage. In order to enhance the pathways for electron percolation, the ATO film was annealed in an air furnace, forming anatase TiO(2). After TiCl(4) post-treatment to enhance the ruthenium-based dye loading on the ATO surface, the optimized ATO arrays were used as a photoanode in a dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC). The best performance of the NT-DSSC device was achieved with a NH(4)F-based ATO film at length of 15 pm, giving J(sc) = 12.15 mA cm(-2), V(oc) = 0.74 V, FF = 0.69, and eta = 6.2% under backside illumination.