Effect of different acceptors on N-hexyl carbazole moiety for dye-sensitized solar cells: design, characterization, molecular structure, and DSSC fabrications.

Hexyl carbazole derivatives are one of the most prominent dye scaffolds in the dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). New substituted carbazole dyes such as DRA-HC, DCA-HC, and DTC-HC were synthesized for DSSCs. These dyes are containing hexyl moiety as electron donor and rhodanine-3-acetic acid, cyanoacetic acid and tetracyanoethylene as an electron acceptor linked to carbazole moiety. The relation between dye structures, photophysical/electrochemical, molecular structure and DSSC manufacturing had been discussed. All structures showed more positive ground-state oxidation potential than I−/I−3 and more negative excited state oxidation potential than the conduction band edge of the semiconductor. The highest efficiency of the DSSCs was obtained in the case of DCA-HC dye (η = 1.41%, VOC = 708 mV, FF = 0.81, and JSC = 2.45 mA cm−2 with 100 mW cm−2) compared to other synthesized dyes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]