Nitrogen-doped hollow carbon nanoparticles as efficient counter electrodes in quantum dot sensitized solar cells

The functions of nitrogen-doped hollow carbon nanoparticles (N-HCNPs) as counter electrodes in quantum dot sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs) have been studied in this paper. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and Tafel-polarization tests reveal a low charge transfer resistance and a high exchange current density between polysulfide electrolyte and the N-HCNPs electrode. Cyclic voltammetry results indicate that the N-HCNPs electrode shows high electrocatalytic activity and excellent tolerance toward the S2−/Sn2− electrolyte. A power conversion efficiency of 2.67% is achieved for the QDSSCs based on N-HCNPs counter electrodes, which is clearly higher than those of the QDSSCs based on HCNPs, carbon nanotubes and Pt counter electrodes. The results reveal that the N-HCNPs electrode is a promising counter electrode candidate for QDSSCs.