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Applied chemistry

Molecules meet materials

Nature volume 485, pages 450–451 (2012)Cite this article

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An inorganic semiconductor can take the place of the liquid electrolyte typically used in dye-sensitized solar cells. This achievement points the way to making these devices more easily manufactured and more stable. See Letter p.486

Dye-sensitized solar cells are inexpensive devices that convert sunlight into electricity with 10–12% efficiency. The design of the cell is simple. It consists of a thick film of porous titanium dioxide covered with a monolayer of light-absorbing dye molecules and sandwiched between two plates of conducting glass. This simplicity makes dye cells an attractive alternative to conventional solid-state cells. However, the liquid electrolyte in which the dye molecules are immersed complicates the manufacture of the cells and reduces their stability. This problem was recognized early on, when these dye cells were first introduced1 in 1991, and a solid-state version2 followed in 1998. However, high efficiencies for solid-state dye cells have not been achieved. On page 486 of this issue, Chung et al.3 show that an inorganic semiconductor can be used in place of the liquid electrolyte to make efficient solid-state dye cells.

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Figure 1: A solid-state dye cell.

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  1. Thomas E. Mallouk is in the Department of Chemistry, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802,USA.,

    Thomas E. Mallouk

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Correspondence to Thomas E. Mallouk.

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Mallouk, T. Molecules meet materials. Nature 485, 450–451 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/485450a

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