Preparation of High Performance Pt Counter Electrodes on Conductive Plastic Substrate for Flexible Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

Pt counter electrodes (CE) were been prepared using ion sputtering method on indium-doped tinoxide coated polyethylene terephthalate (ITO-PET) for flexible dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs). The effect of sputtering time on the properties was characterized by Feld emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), electrochemical impedance (EIS) and UV-vis absorption spectra. The flexible CE show increased catalytic activity but reduced transmittance when the sputtering time is increased from 0 to 80 s. The light-to-electricity conversion efficiency of the DSSCs assembled with the high catalytic activity flexible CE attained a conversion efficiency of 4.0% by using Ti foil as the photoanode substrate under the simulated AM 1.5 sunlight. The results reveal that ion sputtering is an effective method for depositing platinum nanoparticles on plastic substrates with low cost under room-temperature.