title: Photovoltaic cells using composite nanoclusters of porphyrins and fullerenes with gold nanoparticles.
abstract: Novel organic solar cells have been prepared using quaternary self-organization of porphyrin (donor) and fullerene (acceptor) units by clusterization with gold nanoparticles on nanostructured SnO2 electrodes. First, porphyrin-alkanethiolate monolayer-protected gold nanoparticles (H2PCnMPC: n is the number of methylene groups in the spacer) are prepared (secondary organization) starting from the primary component (porphyrin-alkanethiol). These porphyrin-modified gold nanoparticles form complexes with fullerene molecules (tertiary organization), and they are clusterized in acetonitrile/toluene mixed solvent (quaternary organization). The highly colored composite clusters can then be assembled as three-dimensional arrays onto nanostructured SnO2 films to afford the OTE/SnO2/(H2PCnMPC+C60)m electrode using an electrophoretic deposition method. The film of the composite clusters with gold nanoparticle exhibits an incident photon-to-photocurrent efficiency (IPCE) as high as 54% and broad photocurrent action spectra (up to 1000 nm). The power conversion efficiency of the OTE/SnO2/(H2PC15MPC+C60)m composite electrode reaches as high as 1.5%, which is 45 times higher than that of the reference system consisting of the both single components of porphyrin and fullerene.
authors.affiliation: Department of Material and Life Science, Graduate School of Engineering, Osaka University, CREST, Japan Science and Technology Agency, Suita, Osaka 565-0871, Japan.
authors.forename: Taku
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hasobe
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Imahori
authors.forename: Prashant V
authors.initials: PV
authors.lastname: Kamat
authors.forename: Tae Kyu
authors.initials: TK
authors.lastname: Ahn
authors.forename: Seong Keun
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Dongho
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fujimoto
authors.forename: Tsutomu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hirakawa
authors.forename: Shunichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fukuzumi