EFFECT OF TiO2 ON THE PERFORMANCE OF DYE SENSITIZED SOLAR CELL (DSSC) SIMULATED USING ATLAS

Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell (DSSC) has gained much interest due to its low cost of fabrication. Many researches have been carried out to optimize its properties and structure for maximum efficiency and fill factor. In this paper, predicting the efficiency of a DSSC for optimization purposes using Silvaco ATLAS is outlined. Initially, DSSCs with TiO2/dye absorption layer thickness of 6 μm, 12 μm and 18 μm were fabricated. The absorbance of each layer was then measured using UV-Vis. From the absorbance data, the reflection and refraction coefficients were calculated using Kramers Kronig equations. They were later used in ATLAS to simulate the efficiency of the DSSC. In the simulation, the DSSC was modeled as two organic sandwiched regions which consist of TiO2 coated dye and electrolyte. AM 1.5 spectra is used as a light source. For each single photon from the light source, a singlet is assumed to be created. Singlet equation is then solved accounting for Langevin recombination and singlet exciton dissociation. The outcome from ATLAS shows that better efficiency can be achieved using 18μm thick TiO2/dye absorption layer. The outcome is validated by measuring the actual efficiency of the fabricated DSSC. Close agreement between the predicted and measured efficiency suggest that ATLAS can be used as a tool to optimize the DSSC.