EFFECTS OF CO-ADSORBENT SILANE COUPLING AGENT STRUCTURE ON THE PERFORMANCE OF N719-BASED DYE-SENSITIZED SOLAR CELLS: AN EXPERIMENTAL AND DENSITY FUNCTIONAL THEORY INVESTIGATION

Cornellia  Geoffrey; Edmund  Egilip; Ivan Giggs Florence; Jefany Joel  Dapanis; Rachel Fran Mansa; Jedol Dayou; ALVIE SIN VOI LO

doi:10.51200/bsj.v47i1.6582

Authors

Cornellia Geoffrey
Edmund Egilip
Ivan Giggs Florence
Jefany Joel Dapanis
Rachel Fran Mansa
Jedol Dayou
ALVIE SIN VOI LO UMS

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.51200/bsj.v47i1.6582

Keywords:

Dye-sensitized Solar Cells, Silane Coupling Agent, Co-adsorbant.

Abstract

Charge recombination at the TiO₂–electrolyte interface remains a major limitation to the efficiency of dye‑sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). In this work, the effect of silane coupling agents as co‑adsorbents in N719‑based DSSCs was systematically investigated. Eight silane derivatives S1-S8with different molecular structures were incorporated alongside the N719 dye, and their photovoltaic performance was compared with a control device (S0) prepared without silane. The control cell exhibited a power conversion efficiency of 7.1%. Among the silane‑modified devices, S8 achieved the highest efficiency of 7.4%, followed closely by S7 at 7.3%, primarily due to improvements in short‑circuit current density and fill factor. In contrast, devices incorporating S3, S4 and S5 showed reduced efficiencies of 6.9, 6.7 and 6.8%, respectively. The remaining silane co‑adsorbents (S1 - S3) produced photovoltaic parameters comparable to those of the control cell. These results demonstrate that the influence of silane co‑adsorbents on DSSC performance strongly depends on molecular structure. Appropriate silane selection can enhance interfacial passivation and device efficiency, while unsuitable structures may hinder charge generation or collection.

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