Structural and optical analysis of amorphous TiO2 films pbtained by sol-gel process and deposited by spin coating on PET/ITO at room temperature
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31349/RevMexFis.72.041001Keywords:
flexible substrate, amorphous TiO2, spin-coating, room temperatureAbstract
In this work, we proposed a methodology based on the spin coating technique for the deposition of amorphous TiO2 layers obtained by the sol-gel method onto flexible PET/ITO substrates intended for application in flexible organic solar cells (FOSCs). Spin-coated TiO2 layers were used to investigate the influence of their optical and structural properties on the light absorption behavior of the P3HT:PCBM active layer, to integrate the photovoltaic system PET/ITO/TiO2/P3HT:PCBM. Raman spectroscopy confirmed the amorphous nature of TiO2. The average particle size was 216 nm according to SEM results. UV-Vis measurements of TiO2 layers showed a transmittance greater than 65% and a bandgap of 3.77 eV, which corresponds to the bandgap of amorphous TiO2, making them a novel material for electromagnetic radiation to reach the P3HT:PCBM absorber layer and generate excitons within it. A high light absorbance zone (300-550 nm) and a weak light zone (650-900 nm) were found. FT-IR spectra revealed the characteristic absorbance bands of Ti−O at 523 cm-1 and Ti−O−Ti at 434 cm-1. AFM images revealed a uniform distribution of TiO2 onto PET/ITO, and the typical P3HT:PCBM microstructure. This methodology enables the deposition of TiO2 layers at room temperature without the use of any additional chemical bonding agents, which is a key factor for low - temperature fabrication of FOSCs.
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