Transparency Effect of Electrolyte on Light Back-Scattering in Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Conventionally, a film of TiO2 particles of ~300 nm size is employed in DSCs as the back reflector film to enhance the light harvesting. In this study, two electrolytes with different transparencies, iodide-based and cobalt-based electrolytes, were used to investigate the transparency effect of electrolytes on light back-scattering from back scattering layer and also to study its effect on the performance of DSCs. The use of cobalt-based electrolyte is recommended from the view point of optical properties as due to the light absorption in electrolytes, the current density losses are 2.9mA/cm2 and 4.2 mA/cm2 in cobalt- and iodide-based electrolytes, respectively, and the transmission of 100% is observed for cobalt-based electrolyte in 500-600 nm in spite of iodide-based electrolyte. Use of light back-scattering layer, unlike iodide-based cell, causes external quantum efficiency in cobalt-base cell to increase for the wavelengths lower than 350 nm since cobalt-base electrolyte has transparency in this region. In addition, optical calculations demonstrate that in the range 400-500 nm, in which dye has a noticeable absorption, absorption loss is 40% and 30% for iodide- and cobalt-based electrolytes, respectively.