Nitrogen‐Doped CN<i>_x</i>/CNTs Heteroelectrocatalysts for Highly Efficient Dye‐Sensitized Solar Cells

Abstract

The use of polydopamine as a nitrogen containing precursor to generate catalytically active nitrogen‐doped carbon (CN x ) materials on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) is reported. These N‐doped CN x /CNT materials display excellent electrocatalytic activity toward the reduction of triiodide electrolyte in dye‐sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). Further, the influence of various synthesis parameters on the catalytic performance of CN x /CNTs is investigated in detail. The best performing device fabricated with the CN x /CNTs material delivers power conversion efficiency of 7.3%, which is comparable or slightly higher than that of Pt (7.1%) counter electrode‐based DSSC. These CN x /CNTs materials show great potential to address the issues associated with the Pt electrocatalyst including the high cost and scarcity.