Photoanode characteristics of dye-sensitized solar cell containing TiO2 layers with different crystalline orientations

The influence of the crystalline orientation of the TiO2 photoanode on the photo-electrochemical characteristics was investigated to reveal the primary factors responsible for improving the photoelectric conversion efficiency of a dye-sensitized solar cell. It was observed that the photocurrent depended on the plane orientation, whereas the dependence of the photopotential on the open circuit was almost constant. The rate of the photoanodic reaction was attributed to the dye adsorption, depending on the surface energy of each oriented plane of the TiO2. The cathodic reaction on TiO2 during open circuit is likely to determine the rate of the entire electrochemical reaction.