title: Surfactant-free CuInS2 nanocrystals: an alternative counter-electrode material for dye-sensitized solar cells.
abstract: Surfactant-free CuInS2 (CIS) nanocrystals (NCs) were synthesized by replacing organic capping ligands with inorganic ions S(2-). The efficacy of ligand exchange was probed by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-vis spectroscopy, and Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR). The surfactant-free CIS NCs films were obtained by drop-casting onto the clean FTO glass. The electrical conductivity and electrocatalytic activity of CIS NCs films were sharply increased due to the improved interparticle coupling after ligand exchange. When the surfactant-free CIS films were used as counter electrode (CE) in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), a conversion efficiency of η = 5.77% was achieved without sintering.
authors.affiliation: The Key Laboratory for Special Functional Materials of MOE, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China.
authors.forename: Rong-Yue
authors.initials: RY
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.forename: Zheng-Ji
authors.initials: ZJ
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Ze-Liang
authors.initials: ZL
authors.lastname: Hou
authors.forename: Xia
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Wen-Hui
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Si-Xin
authors.initials: SX
authors.lastname: Wu