Effect of dielectric permittivity on the performance of polymer dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) electrolyte dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs)

Muhammad A. A. Kamarudin; Ammar A. Khan; Malik M. Qasim; Timothy D. Wilkinson

doi:10.1117/12.2237296

23 September 2016 Effect of dielectric permittivity on the performance of polymer dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) electrolyte dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs)

Muhammad A. A. Kamarudin, Ammar A. Khan, Malik M. Qasim, Timothy D. Wilkinson

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9940, Liquid Crystals XX; 994010 (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2237296
Event: SPIE Organic Photonics + Electronics, 2016, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) are a type of organic solar cell often cited for their high efficiency and easy fabrication. Recent studies have shown that modification of the standard liquid electrolyte DSSC architecture by the changing one of the components or the addition of additives often results in the improvement in one of the photovoltaic parameters and hence the overall efficiency. Here we explore a dielectric liquid crystal material which is a known insulator but possesses a high degree of order and optical anisotropy. In the presence of an applied electric field, the equilibrium of positive and negative charges are displaced in opposite directions. In this work, different mixtures with different dielectric anisotropies ranging from negative, zero and positive are formulated. These mixtures are then used to prepare polymer dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) electrolytes and subsequently DSSC devices based on these PDLC electrolytes are fabricated. The morphology of the PDLC is observed through polarizing optical microscopy (POM) and the electrical/photovoltaic characterizations are performed through current density-voltage (J-V) measurements and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy.

Citation Download Citation

Muhammad A. A. Kamarudin, Ammar A. Khan, Malik M. Qasim, and Timothy D. Wilkinson "Effect of dielectric permittivity on the performance of polymer dispersed liquid crystal (PDLC) electrolyte dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs)", Proc. SPIE 9940, Liquid Crystals XX, 994010 (23 September 2016); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2237296

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available

Members: $17.00

Non-members: $21.00 ADD TO CART

PROCEEDINGS
9 PAGES

DOWNLOAD PAPER SAVE TO MY LIBRARY

GET CITATION

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Get copyright permission Get copyright permission on Copyright Marketplace

KEYWORDS

Liquid crystals

Dielectrics

Dye sensitized solar cells

Polymers

Molecules

Anisotropy

Photovoltaics

Show All Keywords

Keywords/Phrases

Search In:

Publication Years