Titanium dioxide/calcium fluoride nanocrystallite for efficient dye-sensitized solar cell. A strategy of enhancing light harvest.

Enhancement of light harvest for dye excitation is a persistent objective in dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC). We present here the fabrication of titanium dioxide/calcium fluoride (TiO 2 /CaF 2 ) photoanodes for efficient DSSC applications. Owing to the interference effect of incident light beams reflected from TiO 2 /CaF 2 and CaF 2 /electrolyte interfaces, the light intensity and therefore dye excitation have been markedly enhanced. The crystal structure and therefore photovoltaic performance are optimized by adjusting CaF 2 dosage. A maximum power conversion efficiency of 7.66% is measured from the DSSC employing TiO 2 /0.5 wt% CaF 2 nanocrystallite in comparison with 6.02% for the solar cell with pristine TiO 2 anode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]