Issue 1, 2016

Ruthenium(ii)-polypyridyl zirconium(iv) metal–organic frameworks as a new class of sensitized solar cells

Abstract

A series of Ru(II)L2L′ (L = 2,2′-bipyridyl, L′ = 2,2′-bipyridine-5,5′-dicarboxylic acid), RuDCBPY, -containing zirconium(IV) coordination polymer thin films have been prepared as sensitizing materials for solar cell applications. These metal–organic framework (MOF) sensitized solar cells, MOFSCs, each are shown to generate photocurrent in response to simulated 1 sun illumination. Emission lifetime measurements indicate the excited state quenching of RuDCBPY at the MOF–TiO2 interface is extremely efficient (>90%), presumably due to electron injection into TiO2. A mechanism is proposed in which RuDCBPY-centers photo-excited within the MOF-bulk undergo isotropic energy migration up to 25 nm from the point of origin. This work represents the first example in which a MOFSC is directly compared to the constituent dye adsorbed on TiO2 (DSC). Importantly, the MOFSCs outperformed their RuDCBPY–TiO2 DSC counterpart under the conditions used here and, thus, are solidified as promising solar cell platforms.

Graphical abstract: Ruthenium(ii)-polypyridyl zirconium(iv) metal–organic frameworks as a new class of sensitized solar cells

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Edge Article
Submitted
29 apr. 2015
Accepted
13 okt. 2015
First published
16 okt. 2015
This article is Open Access

All publication charges for this article have been paid for by the Royal Society of Chemistry
Creative Commons BY-NC license

Chem. Sci., 2016,7, 719-727

Author version available

Ruthenium(II)-polypyridyl zirconium(IV) metal–organic frameworks as a new class of sensitized solar cells

W. A. Maza, A. J. Haring, S. R. Ahrenholtz, C. C. Epley, S. Y. Lin and A. J. Morris, Chem. Sci., 2016, 7, 719 DOI: 10.1039/C5SC01565K

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