Low-temperature processing of photoelectrochemical solar cells

Photoelectrochemical (or Gratzel) solar cells are normally manufactured by a process involving a sintering heat treatment of the Ti02 photoanode, to provide mechanical and electrical contact between the nanopanicles. This precludes the use of many low cost substrates and alternative manufacturing approaches. This paper describes a new approach to engineer the nanostmcture such that the heat treatment step can be eliminated whilst retaining acceptable device performance. The principles of and processes used to facilitate this are described and the device characteristics reported.