Efficient passivation of SnO2 nano crystallites by Indoline D-149 via dual chelation

For the first time in SnO₂ based dye solar cells, here we report, efficiency exceeding 3% of the cells consisting with Indoline D-149 dye with unmodified SnO₂ nano-crystallites. The cells sensitized with metal free D-149 dye together with liquid electrolyte comprising with 0.5 M tetrapropyl ammonium iodide and 0.05 M iodine in a mixture of acetonitrile and ethylene carbonate (1:4 by volume) delivered a short circuit current density of 10.4 mA cm^?2 with an open circuit voltage of 530 mV under the illumination of 100 mW cm^?2 (AM1.5) having an efficiency of 3.1%. As evident from the FTIR measurement, strong surface passivation of recombination centers of SnO₂ crystallites due to the dual mode of attachment of dye molecules to the surface of SnO₂ via both COOH and S–O direct bond might be the possible reason for this enhancement in these SnO₂ based cells.