Inorganic Solar Cells Based on Electrospun ZnO Nanofibrous Networks and Electrodeposited Cu2O

Luming Zhang; Huaquan Sun; Lai Xie; Jinnan Lu; Luyong Zhang; Sujuan Wu; Xingsen Gao; Xubing Lu; Jinhua Li; Jun-Ming Liu

doi:10.1186/s11671-015-1169-8

Inorganic Solar Cells Based on Electrospun ZnO Nanofibrous Networks and Electrodeposited Cu2O

Nanoscale Res Lett. 2015 Dec;10(1):465. doi: 10.1186/s11671-015-1169-8. Epub 2015 Dec 1.

Authors

Luming Zhang¹, Huaquan Sun¹, Lai Xie¹, Jinnan Lu¹, Luyong Zhang¹, Sujuan Wu², Xingsen Gao¹, Xubing Lu¹, Jinhua Li³, Jun-Ming Liu^{4

5}

Affiliations

¹ Institute for Advanced Materials and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Quantum Engineering and Quantum Materials, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510006, China.
² Institute for Advanced Materials and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Quantum Engineering and Quantum Materials, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510006, China. [email protected].
³ Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, Hubei University, Wuhan, 430062, China.
⁴ Institute for Advanced Materials and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Quantum Engineering and Quantum Materials, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510006, China. [email protected].
⁵ Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093, China. [email protected].

Abstract

The nanostructured ZnO/copper oxide (Cu2O) photovoltaic devices based on electrospun ZnO nanofibrous network and electrodeposited Cu2O layer have been fabricated. The effects of the pH value of electrodeposition solution and the Cu2O layer thickness on the photovoltaic performances have been investigated. It is revealed that the pH value influences the morphology and structure of the Cu2O layer and thus the device performances. The Cu2O layer with an appropriate thickness benefits to charge transfer and light absorption. The device prepared at the optimal conditions shows the lowest recombination rate and exhibits a power conversion efficiency of ~0.77 %.

Keywords: Electrodeposited Cu2O layer; Electrodeposition time; Electrospun ZnO nanofibers; ZnO/Cu2O solar cells; pH value.