Ball-Type Dioxy-o-Carborane Bridged Cobaltphthalocyanine: Synthesis, Characterization and DFT Studies for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells as Photosensitizer

Abstract

The synthesis and spectroscopic characterization of an innovative ball-type cobalt metallophthalocyanine 4, bridged by four 1,2-bis(2-hydroxymethyl)-O-carborane (HMOC) 1 units, has been achieved. The synthesized compound 4 was characterized structurally and electronically using elemental analysis, UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy, FT-IR spectroscopy, MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry, EPR spectroscopy and magnetic susceptibility. The photovoltaic performance of the newly synthesized compound in dye-sensitized solar cells was investigated. In order to clarify the effect of dye-sensitization time on photovoltaic performance parameters, the sensitization time was varied from 12 to 60 h and the performance parameters were investigated. It was found that sensitization time had a strong effect on the main performance parameters. The best photovoltaic performance was achieved after sensitization for 36 h (short circuit current density, 5.41 mA cm-2; overall conversion efficiency, 3.42%). Computational UV-Vis absorption spectra of the molecule was calculated using time dependent density functional theory and was found consistent with measured UV-Vis spectra.