Solid state photovoltaic cells based on localized surface plasmon-induced charge separation

Abstract

Charge separation induced by localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of gold and silver nanoparticles (AuNPs and AgNPs) are applied to various devices and photoelectrochemical functionalities. Here, we develop all solid state In/TiO2/MNPs/ITO photovoltaic cells (MNP = AuNP or AgNP) by using two-dimensional MNP ensembles. Their quantum efficiencies are higher than those of previously reported solid state cells with hole-transport materials (HTMs) (ITO/TiO2/AuNPs/HTM/Au). The photoresponses from cells without HTMs suggest that the photovoltage generates at the TiO2-MNP interface.