A nano-porous TiO2 thin film coating method for dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) using electrostatic spraying with dye solution

The dye coloring process on a nano-porous TiO2 thin film for DSSCs was studied using an electrostatic spraying (ESS) method. In this study, dye coating experiments were performed using homemade ESS equipment. The coating patterns on the TiO2 thin film are changed by adjusting the applied voltages of the ESS system. The geometry of the coating patterns is observed by a charge-coupled device (CCD) camera. The TiO2 thin film is fabricated by controlling the electric field which allows a uniform color distribution to be obtained with a high dyeing capacity. The colored TiO2 thin films are compared with those obtained using a conventional immersed dye solution by means of an UV–vis spectrometer. The performance of this novel coloring process was confirmed by measuring I–V curve characteristics.