Improvement in the light conversion efficiency of silicon solar cell by spin coating of CuO,ZnO nanoparticles and CuO/ZnO mixed metal nanocomposite material

Synthesis of pure Zinc oxide (ZnO), Copper oxide (CuO) nanoparticles (NPs) and their (ZnO/CuO) nanocomposites (NCs) in 1:1 M ratio were successfully prepared by co-precipitation method. The structural properties of the as synthesized nanoparticles and nanocomposite materials were investigated using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. Optical band-gap studies were done using UV–Visible absorption spectroscopy. Photovoltaic properties of pure ZnO NPs, CuO NPs and ZnO/CuO NCs coated over a single-crystalline silicon solar cell were carried out to compare improvement of light-conversion efficiency in coated solar cell. The maximum light conversion efficiencies were found to be of 8.02% for CuO (3 mg/ml concentration) and 7.28% for ZnO NPs (3 mg/ml concentration), whereas that of mixed metal nanocomposite CuO/ZnO NCs was found to be 7.62%. at very low concentration of 1 mg/ml. This indicates with low concentration of mixed metal NCs an improvement in light efficiency can be obtained. The enhancement in efficiency could be due to formation of p - n heterojunction by CuO/ZnO NCs composites which enhances the number of electrons and holes participating in conduction on the surface.     

Patterned 3-dimensional metal grid electrodes as alternative electron collectors in dye-sensitized solar cells

We describe the application of 3-dimensional metal grid electrodes (3D-MGEs) as electron collectors in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSCs) as a replacement for fluorinated tin oxide (FTO) electrodes. Requirements, structure, advantages, and limitations of the metal grid electrodes are discussed. Solar conversion efficiencies of 6.2% have been achieved in 3D-MGE based solar cells, comparable to that fabricated on FTO (7.1%). The charge transport properties and collection efficiencies in these novel solar cells have been studied using electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.     

Underpotential Deposition‐Induced Synthesis of Composition‐Tunable Pt?Cu Nanocrystals and Their Catalytic Properties

Pt? Cu alloy octahedral nanocrystals (NCs) have been synthesized successfully by using N,N‐dimethylformamide as both the solvent and the reducing agent in the presence of cetyltrimethylammonium chloride. Cu underpotential deposition (UPD) is found to play a key role in the formation of the Pt? Cu alloy NCs. The composition in the Pt? Cu alloy can be tuned by adjusting the ratio of metal precursors in solution. However, the Cu content in the Pt? Cu alloy NCs cannot exceed 50 %. Due to the fact that Cu precursor cannot be reduced to metallic copper and the Cu content cannot exceed 50 %, we achieved the formation of the Pt? Cu alloy by using Cu UPD on the Pt surface. In addition, the catalytic activities of Pt? Cu alloy NCs with different composition were investigated in electrocatalytic oxidation of formic acid. The results reveal that the catalytic performance is strongly dependent on Pt? Cu alloy composition. The sample of Pt₅₀Cu₅₀ exhibits excellent activity in electrocatalytic oxidation of formic acid.     

多策略可控合成原子精度合金纳米团簇

合金纳米团簇作为一类新兴的多功能纳米材料已被广泛用于催化、光学传感以及生物医学成像等研究领域,而纳米团簇的可控合成和结构特征是调节纳米团簇性质并对其进一步利用的基础。尽管当前有关金属纳米团簇可控合成和结构特征的研究主要集中在单金属纳米团簇中,但有关合金纳米团簇原子精度的可控合成也取得了显著的进展。本文综述了配体保护的合金金属纳米团簇原子精度可控合成策略,包括一步合成法、金属交换、配体交换、化学刻蚀、簇间反应、原位两相配体交换以及最新的表面模体交换反应,并对相关合成策略的优缺点进行了详细的讨论和阐述。     

Semiconducting nanocrystals,conjugated polymers,and conjugated polymer/nanocrystal nanohybrids and their usage in solar cells

As one of the major renewable energy sources, solar energy has the potential to become an essential component of future global energy production. With the increasing demand in energy, the harvesting of solar energy using inexpensive materials and manufacturing methods has attracted considerable attention. Organic/inorganic (i.e., conjugated polymer/nanocrystal (CP/NC)) nanohybrid solar cell, including both physically mixed CP/NC composites and covalently linked CP-NC nanocomposites, is one of the several most promising alternative, cost-effective concepts for solar-to-electric energy conversion that has been offered to challenge conventional Si solar cells over the past decade. It has low fabrication cost and capability of large-scale production. However, to date, the highest power conversion efficiency (PCE) of organic/inorganic nanohybrid solar cells has been reported to be only 5.5%, which is still lower than the theoretical prediction of more than 10%. Several problems, i. e., microscopic phase separation of semiconducting CPs and NCs, low charge injection, and low carrier collection, have not been well addressed. More research remains to be done to improve the efficiency of CP/NC nanohybrid solar cells. In this review article, the recent advances in solving these problems were discussed. For the CP/NC solar cells prepared by physically mixing electron donating CP and electron accepting NC (i.e., forming CP/NC composites), methods involving the use of solvent mixtures and ligand modification to control the phase separation at the nanoscale are discussed; the implications of intriguing anisotropic NCs as well as their assemblies (i.e., NC arrays) on improving the charge collection are presented. For newly developed CP/NC solar cells prepared by chemically tethering CP chains on the NC surface (i.e., yielding CP-NC nanocomposites, thereby preventing microscopic phase separation of CP and NC and improving their electronic interaction), recent strategies on the synthesis of such nanocomposites and their photovoltaic performance are discussed.     

Cu(2+)-assisted synthesis of hexoctahedral Au-Pd alloy nanocrystals with high-index facets

Controlled syntheses of multicomponent metal nanocrystals (NCs) and high-index surfaces have attracted increasing attention due to the specific physical and chemical properties of such NCs. Taking advantage of copper underpotential deposition as a bridge, hexoctahedral Au-Pd alloy NCs with {hkl} facets exposed were successfully synthesized, while phase separation occurred in the absence of Cu(2+) ions. The as-prepared hexoctahedral Au-Pd alloy NCs exhibited very excellent performance in terms of both formic acid electro-oxidation and methanol tolerance due to synergism between the high-index facets and the alloy.     

Bandgap engineering of monodispersed Cu(2-x)S(y)Se(1-y) nanocrystals through chalcogen ratio and crystal structure

Bandgap engineering is important in light-absorption optimization of nanocrystals (NCs) for applications such as highly efficient solar cells. Herein, a facile one-pot method is developed to synthesize monodispersed ternary alloyed copper sulfide selenide (Cu(2-x)S(y)Se(1-y)) NCs with tunable composition, structure, and morphology. The energy bandgaps can be tuned with the chalcogen ratio, and the crystal structure of the NCs is found to produce an effect on their bandgap and light absorption. The results are significant in bandgap engineering of semiconductor NCs.     

Dopant-free NiOx Nanocrystals: A Low-cost and Stable Hole Transport Material for Commercializing Perovskite Optoelectronics

Advancing inverted (p-i-n) perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is critical for commercial applications given their compatibility with different bottom cells for tandem photovoltaics, low-temperature processability (≤100 °C), and promising operational stability. Although inverted PSCs have achieved an efficiency of over 25 % using doped or expensive organic hole transport materials (HTMs), their synthesis cost and stability still cannot meet the requirements for their commercialization. Recently, dopant-free and low-cost non-stoichiometric nickel oxide nanocrystals (NiO_x NCs) have been extensively studied as a low-cost and effective HTM in perovskite optoelectronics. In this minireview, we summarize the synthesis and surface-functionalization methods of NiO_x NCs. Then, the applications of NiO_x NCs in other perovskite optoelectronics beyond photovoltaics are discussed. Finally, we provide a perspective for the future development of NiO_x NCs for the commercialization of perovskite optoelectronics.     

Ⅰ-Ⅲ-Ⅵ族半导体纳米晶:合成,性质及应用（英文）

半导体纳米晶具有独特的量子限域效应以及新颖的尺寸和形貌依赖特性,已被证实是在低成本高性能光伏器件、光致及电致发光二极管、生物成像、光催化等领域非常具有潜力的新型材料.其中,II-VI族与I-III-VI族半导体纳米晶由于其优异的性能在过去的数十年中引起了广泛的关注.过去数十年对于II-VI族半导体纳米晶的研究已经十分成熟,然而几乎所有的传统II-VI族半导体纳米晶都含有对环境有害的元素,对人体和环境造成不可逆转的伤害,从而限制了II-VI族半导体纳米晶的进一步应用.与二元II-VI族纳米晶相比,大部分三元I-III-VI族纳米晶不含镉和铅等重金属元素,因而具有低毒性的特点,并且其带隙窄、吸光收系数大、斯托克斯位移大、自吸收小以及发光波长在近红外区,所以有望使其成为新一代荧光纳米晶材料.例如,CuInS_2的带隙为1.53 eV,与太阳光谱匹配且其吸光系数较大,在10.5cm.~1左右,从而使其成为制备太阳能电池的一种优秀材料.另一方面,I-III-VI族纳米晶在可见光和近红外范围内呈现与尺寸相关的发光,它们的荧光量子产率在包覆ZnS壳后可超过50%,因而在照明,显示和生物成像领域具广泛应用的潜力.水溶性的I-III-VI族量子点粒径尺寸可以小于10 nm,可以减小纳米颗粒通过肾清除的淘汰率,并且具有高荧光性能和耐光性的特点,因此成为进行生物成像工作的优秀材料.与此同时,I-III-VI族纳米晶在光催化领域也展现了巨大的发展前景.本综述主要关注I-III-VI族纳米晶的合成,性质及应用.首先,我们概述了不同的化学合成方法,并列举讨论了一些经典的工作,根据纳米晶的种类分类统计了主要合成方法、形貌及尺寸.第二部分,我们讨论了它们的光物理和电子特性,解释了纳米晶的"donor-acceptor pair"(DAP)结合机理,概述了I-III-VI族纳米晶的磁光现象.接下来,我们概述了I-III-VI族纳米晶主要的应用领域,着重总结了在太阳能电池领域、半导体发光二极管领域、生物成像领域以及光催化制氢领域的研究进展.最后,我们会讨论半导体纳米晶的应用前景,以及它的机遇和挑战.     

Pd–Pb Alloy Nanocrystals with Tailored Composition for Semihydrogenation: Taking Advantage of Catalyst Poisoning

Metallic nanocrystals (NCs) with well‐defined sizes and shapes represent a new family of model systems for establishing structure–function relationships in heterogeneous catalysis. Here in this study, we show that catalyst poisoning can be utilized as an efficient strategy for nanocrystals shape and composition control, as well as a way to tune the catalytic activity of catalysts. Lead species, a well‐known poison for noble‐metal catalysts, was investigated in the growth of Pd NCs. We discovered that Pb atoms can be incorporated into the lattice of Pd NCs and form Pd–Pb alloy NCs with tunable composition and crystal facets. As model catalysts, the alloy NCs with different compositions showed different selectivity in the semihydrogenation of phenylacetylene. Pd–Pb alloy NCs with better selectivity than that of the commercial Lindlar catalyst were discovered. This study exemplified that the poisoning effect in catalysis can be explored as efficient shape‐directing reagents in NC growth, and more importantly, as a strategy to tailor the performance of catalysts with high selectivity.     

Efficient All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells with Low-Optical-Loss Carbazolyl Interconnecting Layers

Combining wide-band gap (WBG) and narrow-band gap (NBG) perovskites with interconnecting layers (ICLs) to construct monolithic all-perovskite tandem solar cell is an effective way to achieve high power conversion efficiency (PCE). However, optical losses from ICLs need to be further reduced to leverage the full potential of all-perovskite tandem solar cells. Here, metal oxide nanocrystal layers anchored with carbazolyl hole-selective-molecules (CHs), which exhibit much lower optical loss, is employed to replace poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrenesulfonate (PEDOT : PSS) as the hole transporting layers (HTLs) in lead-tin (Pb-Sn) perovskite sub-cells and ICLs in all-perovskite tandem solar cells. Optically transparent indium tin oxide nanocrystals (ITO NCs) layers are employed to enhance anchoring of CHs, while a mixture of two CHs is adopted to tune the surface energy-levels of ITO NCs. The optimized mixed Pb-Sn NBG perovskite solar cells demonstrate a high PCE of 23.2 %, with a high short-circuit current density (J_sc) of 33.5 mA cm⁻². A high PCE of 28.1 % is further obtained in all-perovskite tandem solar cells, with the highest J_sc of 16.7 mA cm⁻² to date. Encapsulated tandem solar cells maintain 90 % of their reference point after 500 h of operation at the maximum power point (MPP) under 1-Sun illumination.     

通过调控晶体结构提高氧气还原反应电催化活性:MPt金属间相纳米晶（英文）

燃料电池的正极主要发生氧还原反应(ORR),但是该反应的动力学速率较慢,需要催化剂来降低反应的过电势.目前商用的催化剂是碳载铂纳米粒子催化剂,但是铂高昂的价格严重阻碍了燃料电池的大规模商业化.近年来的理论和实验研究表明,过渡金属(M)与铂(Pt)形成的纳米晶合金(MPt)能够作为有效的ORR催化剂,同时由于引入价格低廉的过渡金属,催化剂成本有所降低.然而,即使合金化的催化剂具有良好的初始催化性能,但是在燃料电池的实际操作环境,即高电压、高温和酸性条件,长时间运行之后,过渡金属很容易被腐蚀流失,从而留下表面配位数较低的铂原子,而这些铂原子对ORR反应几乎没有催化作用,导致催化剂逐渐失活,燃料电池的输出功率逐渐降低.最近一些研究表明,铂基催化剂在一定条件下,例如加热,能够发生固态相变,形成结构有序的即金属间纳米晶(iNCs).与无序排列的合金相比,这种有序的MPt能够调控表面铂原子与含氧中间体的结合能,可以进一步提高ORR活性;同时,由于在金属间纳米晶中铂原子与过渡金属原子具有很强的相互作用,过渡金属在酸性溶液中也不容易被腐蚀,从而大大提高了催化剂的稳定性.本综述以FePt,CoPt和PbPt为例,总结了它们的相变规律和条件,同时关注它们的合成-结构-性能的构效关系,突出金属间结构在提高活性和稳定性方面的优势.最后,为了进一步提高MPt金属间纳米晶的活性,我们提出一些可能的方向和观点,包括:(1)在实现无序-相变的同时实现形貌调控来提高催化剂活性;(2)关注尺寸效应,尽可能减小MPt金属间纳米晶的尺寸,提高铂的利用率,从而提高催化剂活性;(3)关注材料的有序程度,尽可能提高材料的有序度,充分发挥金属间纳米晶对于氧还原反应的优势     

Recent development of perylene diimide-based small molecular non-fullerene acceptors in organic solar cells

This review summarizes the recent progress of perylene diimide (PDI) derivatives used as the acceptor materials in non-fullerene organic solar cells. The resulting structure-property correlations and design strategies of this type of acceptors are discussed and commented, which will help to constructing high-performance PDI-based acceptor materials in the future. The problems at present and the effort direction are also pointed out in this review.     

Hybrid polymer/nanoparticle solar cells: preparation, principles and challenges

Hybrid polymer/nanoparticle solar cells have a light harvesting layer composed of semiconducting inorganic nanoparticles and a semiconducting conjugated polymer. They have potential to give high power conversion efficiencies (PCE). However, the PCE values reported for these solar cells are not currently as high as anticipated. This article reviews the main methods currently used for preparing hybrid polymer/nanoparticle solar cells from the colloid perspective. PCE data for the period of 2005-2011 are presented for hybrid polymer/nanoparticle solar cells and compared to those from polymer/fullerene cells. The key reasons for the relatively low PCE values for hybrid polymer/nanoparticle solar cells are uncontrolled aggregation and residual insulating ligands at the nanoparticle surface. Two hybrid polymer/nanoparticle systems studied at Manchester are considered in which the onset of aggregation and its affect on composite film morphology were studied from the colloidal perspective. It is concluded that step-change approaches are required to increase the PCEs of hybrid polymer/nanoparticle solar cells and move them toward the 10% value required for widespread commercialisation. A range of nanoparticles that have potential for application in possible longer term terawatt solar energy production are discussed.     

Influence of Pt Alloying on the Fluorescence of Fully Inorganic,Colloidal Gold Nanoclusters

Noble metal alloy nanoclusters (NCs) are interesting systems as the properties of two or more elements can be combined in one particle, leading to interesting fluorescence phenomena. However, previous studies have been exclusively performed on ligand-capped NCs from wet chemical synthesis. This makes it difficult to differentiate to which extent the fluorescence is affected by ligand-induced effects or the elemental composition of the metal core. In this work, we used laser fragmentation in liquids (LFL) to fabricate colloidal gold-rich bi-metallic AuPt NCs in the absence of organic ligands and demonstrate the suitability of this technique to produce molar fraction series of 1nm alloy NC. We found that photoluminescence of ligand-free NCs is not a phenomenon limited to Au. However, even minute amounts of Pt atoms in the AuPt NCs lead to quenching and red-shift of the fluorescence, which may be attributed to the altered surface charge density.     

Synthesis of Pd‐Pt Ultrathin Assembled Nanosheets as Highly Efficient Electrocatalysts for Ethanol Oxidation

Control over composition and morphology of nanocrystals (NCs) is significant to develop advanced catalysts applicable to polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells and further overcome the performance limitations. Here, we present a facile synthesis of Pd?Pt alloy ultrathin assembled nanosheets (UANs) by regulating the growth behavior of Pd?Pt nanostructures. Iodide ions supplied from KI play as capping agents for the {111} plane to promote 2‐dimensional (2D) growth of Pd and Pt, and the optimal concentrations of cetyltrimethylammonium chloride and ascorbic acid result in the generation of Pd?Pt alloy UANs in high yield. The prepared Pd?Pt alloy UANs exhibited the remarkable enhancement of the catalytic activity and stability toward ethanol oxidation reaction compared to irregular‐shaped Pd?Pt alloy NCs, commercial Pd/C, and commercial Pt/C. Our results confirm that the Pd?Pt alloy composition and ultrathin 2D morphology offer high accessible active sites and favorable electronic structure for enhancing electrocatalytic activity.     

Novel ZnO nanostructured electrodes for higher power conversion efficiencies in polymeric solar cells

1-Dimensional nanostructured ZnO electrodes have been demonstrated to be potentially interesting for their application in solar cells. Herein, we present a novel procedure to control the ZnO nanowire optoelectronic properties by means of surface modification. The nanowire surface is functionalized with ZnO nanoparticles in order to provide an improved contact to the photoactive P3HT:PCBM film that enhances the overall power conversion efficiency of the resulting solar cell. Charge extraction and transient photovoltage measurements have been used to successfully demonstrate that the surface modified nanostructured electrode contributes in enhancing the exciton dissociating ratio and in enlarging the charge lifetime as a consequence of a reduced charge recombination. Under AM1.5G illumination, all these factors contribute to a considerably large increase in photocurrent yielding unusually high conversion efficiencies over 4% and external quantum efficiencies of 87% at 550 nm for commercially available P3HT:PCBM based solar cells. The same approach might be equally used for polymeric materials under development to overcome the record reported efficiencies.     

钙钛矿太阳电池吸光层材料研究进展

近年来,有机-无机卤化铅钙钛矿太阳电池的研究取得了突破性进展,公证记录电池效率22.1%,与CdTe薄膜电池（认证记录电池效率22.1%）和CuInGaSn（CIGS）（认证记录电池效率22.3%）薄膜电池技术相媲美,已经接近于市场上主导地位的晶体硅太阳电池（约25%）。有机卤化铅钙钛矿太阳电池器件的长期效率输出稳定性和含毒性Pb严重制约其实际应用。本文将讨论有机卤化铅钙钛矿太阳电池不稳定性因素和相应的解决方案,并对钙钛矿材料中Pb元素的取代工作和无机非铅钙钛矿材料及其太阳电池的研究进行了阐述与展望。     

Lead‐Free Halide Perovskite Nanocrystals: Crystal Structures,Synthesis, Stabilities,and Optical Properties

In recent years, there have been rapid advances in the synthesis of lead halide perovskite nanocrystals (NCs) for use in solar cells, light emitting diodes, lasers, and photodetectors. These compounds have a set of intriguing optical, excitonic, and charge transport properties, including outstanding photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) and tunable optical band gap. However, the necessary inclusion of lead, a toxic element, raises a critical concern for future commercial development. To address the toxicity issue, intense recent research effort has been devoted to developing lead‐free halide perovskite (LFHP) NCs. In this Review, we present a comprehensive overview of currently explored LFHP NCs with an emphasis on their crystal structures, synthesis, optical properties, and environmental stabilities (e.g., UV, heat, and moisture resistance). In addition, strategies for enhancing optical properties and stabilities of LFHP NCs as well as the state‐of‐the‐art applications are discussed. With the perspective of their properties and current challenges, we provide an outlook for future directions in this rapidly evolving field to achieve high‐quality LFHP NCs for a broader range of fundamental research and practical applications.     

Highly Luminescent Heterostructured Copper‐Doped Zinc Sulfide Nanocrystals for Application in Cancer Cell Labeling

The structural characteristics of the seed‐mediated synthesis of heterostructured CuS–ZnS nanocrystals (NCs) and Cu‐doped ZnS (ZnS:Cu) NCs synthesized by two different protocols are compared and analyzed. At high Cu dopant concentrations, segregated subclusters of ZnS and CuS are observed. The photoluminescence quantum yield of ZnS:Cu NCs is about 50–80 %; a value much higher than that of ZnS NCs (6 %). Finally, these NCs are coated with a thin silica shell by using (3‐mercaptopropyl)triethoxysilane in a reverse microemulsion to make them water soluble. Cytotoxicity experiments show that these silica‐coated NCs have greatly reduced toxicity on both cancerous HeLa and noncancerous Chinese hamster ovary cells. The labeling of cancerous HeLa cells is also demonstrated.