Preparation of self-assembled gold nanoparticles thin film as a photoelectrode for dye-sensitized solar cells

The effect of various self-assembly time (8, 12, 24hrs) for Au nanoparticles (NPs) Thin film was investigated. When the self-assembly time is 8 hours, the efficiency of TiO₂-Au photoelectrode is increased from 1.42% (for TiO₂ case) to 2.26% with an enhancement of 59%, and the fill factor is also increased from 51% to 57%. In the analysis of EIS, the charge transfer resistance of TiO₂-Au photoelectrode and electron recombination rate of I₃- at the TiO₂-Au/electrolyte interface is lower than the TiO₂ photoelectrode. The results indicate that the adding of AuNPs can increase the conductivity and reduce the recombination of charge in photoelectrode.