Control and regulation of the performance of fullerene-based dye-sensitized solar cells with a D–D–A structure by external electric fields

Abstract

We investigated the modulating effect of an electric field (F_ext) on the photovoltaic properties of triphenylamine-based sensitizers with a D–D–A structure and compared the photovoltaic parameters at different electric field intensities. The results show that F_ext can effectively adjust the photoelectric properties of the molecule. From the change of the parameters that measures the degree of electron delocalization, it can be seen that the F_ext can effectively strengthen the electronic communication and promote the charge transfer process within the molecule. And the dye molecule under a strong F_ext has a narrower energy gap, more favorable injection, regeneration driving force and a larger conduction band energy level shift, which ensures that the dye molecule can exhibit larger V_oc and J_sc under a strong F_ext. The results of calculations on the photovoltaic parameters of dye molecules show that dye molecules can exhibit better photovoltaic performance under the action of F_ext, which provides beneficial predictions and prospects for the development of highly efficient DSSCs.