Efficient solar energy conversion using TiO2 nanotubes produced by rapid breakdown anodization - A comparison

Abstract

We report on dye-sensitization of different TiO2 nanotube layers, their photoelectrochemical response and their efficiency for solar energy conversion. The tubes compared in this study were either grown by controlled Ti anodization in fluoride containing electrolytes or by rapid breakdown anodization (RBA) of Ti in fluoride free electrolytes. After converting the different tube layers to anatase and sensitizing with Ru-dye (N719), clearly layers consisting of RBA-NTs show a significantly higher photoresponse and conversion efficiencies than tubes formed under self-ordering conditions. © 2007 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.