Improvement in photovoltaic performance of dye-sensitized solar cell using ruthenium as dopant into titania

Ru-doped TiO₂ compact layer was deposited on conducting substrate fluorine-doped tin oxide electrode by hydrothermal technique for dye-sensitized solar cell application. The solar cell’s characteristics such as open circuit voltage, current density–voltage (J–V) characteristics, and electrochemical impedance spectra, showed that Ruthenium when doped into bare TiO₂ acts as a blocking layer that reduces the charge recombination from the transparent conducting oxide layer. Here, we have synthesized bare and Ru-doped TiO₂ by a hydrothermal method for dye sensitized solar cell application. Recently, the research of the DSSCs has advanced by leaps and bounds, especially in the field of pursuing a cost-effective solution process with high power conversion efficiency. Nanorods are efficient electron transport layers with a high surface area. The nanorods were characterized by various techniques, such as X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, UV‒Visible spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, solar cell characterization, and impedance spectroscopy. The impedance study provides detailed information about the recombination losses at various interfaces. It is observed that there is a 20% increase in photovoltaic performance after 3% Ru doping in TiO₂. The efficiency received for 3% Ru doped TiO₂ layers was obtained to be 3.54% which increases the charge transfer and collection capacity of the solar cell. It also affects the morphology of compact layer 3% Ru doped TiO₂ well-aligned nanorods are observed on doping of 3% ruthenium into TiO₂. Results show that Ru-doped TiO₂ can be an alternative to the bare TiO₂ compact layer to obtain efficient solar cells.