Colloidal Sb2S3 nanocrystals: synthesis, characterization and fabrication of solid-state semiconductor sensitized solar cells

Abstract

Inorganic nanocrystals composed of earth-abundant and non-toxic elements are crucial to fabricate sustainable photovoltaic devices on a large scale. In this study, various shapes and different phases of antimony sulfide nanocrystals, which are composed of non-scarce and non-toxic elements, are synthesized using a colloidal hot-injection method. The effect of various synthetic parameters on the final morphology is explored. Also, foreign ion (chlorine) effects on the morphology of Sb₂S₃ nanocrystals have been observed. Structural, optical and morphological properties of the nanocrystals were investigated, and Sb₂S₃ nanocrystal-based solid-state semiconductor-sensitized solar cells were fabricated using the as-prepared nanocrystals. We achieved a promising power conversion efficiency of 1.48%.