S.Ravikumar, M.Venkatachalam, M.Saroja, P.Gowthaman,
P.Thamarai selvan, S.Shankar

ABSTRACT

Abstract : Thin films form a fair share in the ever growing solar cell research and also in the market. One of the most versatile materials grown as thin films today are from derivatives of pure and doped Zinc Oxide. A combination of dip coating and hydrothermal technique is a powerful tool in order to achieve good quality ZnO thin films. The initial run is made by dip coating process where a supersaturated solution of the material to be coated is taken in a beaker. A glass substrate is dipped into the supersaturated solution and dried for an optimal amount of time. Multi layered thin film coatings are formed and dried consequently before each individual dipping to enhance uniformity. Pure thin films of Zinc Oxide are initially grown by hydrothermal method with thickness varying so as to reach the optimal solar cell quality. These ZnO thin films are investigated for their structural and optical properties to fabricate dye sensitized solar cells. The prepared ZnO ruthenium based DSSC reached a total IPCE of 2.846% and 3.03% respectively. Key words : ZnO thin films, dip coating, hydrothermal, solar cells.