What difference does a thiophene make? Evaluation of a 4,4′-bis(thiophene) functionalised 2,2′-bipyridyl copper(I) complex in a dye-sensitized solar cell

Kathryn A. Wills, H. J. Mandujano-Ramírez, G. Merino, G. Oskam, P. Cowper, M. D. Jones, P. J. Cameron, S. E. Lewis

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    Abstract

    The synthesis of a 4,4′-bis(2-thienyl-5-carboxylic acid) functionalised 2,2′-bipyridine ligand and corresponding copper(I) complex is described and its application in a dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) is studied. The positioning of the thiophene groups appears favourable from DFT analysis and a best efficiency of 1.41% was obtained with this dye, for a 0.3 cm2 cell area DSSC. Two absorbance bands are observed in the electronic absorption spectrum of the copper(I) complex at 316 nm and 506 nm, with ε values of 50,000 M−1 cm−1 and 9030 M−1 cm−1, respectively. Cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy are also used to provide a detailed analysis of the dye and assess its functionality in a DSSC.
    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)419-426
    JournalDyes and Pigments
    Volume134
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 19 Jul 2016

    Bibliographical note

    This is an open access article under the CC BY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

    Keywords

    • Dye-sensitized solar cell
    • DSSC
    • Copper
    • Thiophene
    • Impedance spectroscopy

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