title: Carbon fiber/Co9S8 nanotube arrays hybrid structures for flexible quantum dot-sensitized solar cells.
abstract: Recently, hybrid carbon materials and inorganic nanocrystals have received an intensive amount of attention and have opened up an exciting new field in the design and fabrication of high-performance catalysts. Here we present a novel kind of hybrid counter electrode (CE) consisting of a carbon fiber (CF) and Co9S8 nanotube arrays (NTs) for fiber-shaped flexible quantum dot-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs). The growth mechanisms of Co(CO3)0.35Cl0.20(OH)1.10 nanowire arrays (NWs) on the CFs were discussed, and the catalytic activity of the CF, Pt and Co9S8/CF hybrid structure (Co9S8@CF) were elucidated systematically as well. An absolute energy conversion efficiency of 3.79% has been demonstrated under 100 mW cm(-2) AM 1.5 illumination by using Co9S8@CF as a CE. This work not only demonstrates an innovative approach for growing cobalt sulfide NTs on flexible substrates that can be applied in flexible devices for energy harvesting and storage, but also provides a kind of hybrid structure and high-efficiency CE for QDSSCs.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces, Department of Chemistry, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen 361005, China. cjlin@xmu.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Wenxi
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Chang
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Meidan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.forename: Miaoqiang
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lv
authors.forename: Changjian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lin
mesh_terms: D019187:Cadmium Compounds / Q000737:chemistry; D002244:Carbon / Q000737:chemistry*; D000077482:Carbon Fiber; D003035:Cobalt / Q000737:chemistry*; D058266:Dielectric Spectroscopy; D011211:Electric Power Supplies; D004566:Electrodes; D043942:Nanotubes / Q000737:chemistry*; D045663:Quantum Dots / Q000737:chemistry*; D018036:Selenium Compounds / Q000737:chemistry; D012993:Solar Energy; D014025:Titanium / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D019187:Cadmium Compounds; D000077482:Carbon Fiber; D018036:Selenium Compounds; C009495:titanium dioxide; D003035:Cobalt; D002244:Carbon; C058667:cadmium selenide; D014025:Titanium; C027875:cobaltous sulfide