99%, Optotech Materials Co., Ltd, Taichung, Taiwan). The graphene film was deposited on the surface

of the first photoelectrode layer. The working pressure of the chamber was maintained at 3 mTorr. The constant RF power was 90 W; the flow rate of argon was 90 sccm, and the deposition time was 2 min. DSSC assembly The electrolyte was composed of 0.05 M iodide, 0.5 M lithium iodide, and 0.5 M 4-tert-butylpyridine (TBP) in propylene carbonate. A 100-nm-thick layer of platinum was sputtered onto the ITO substrate as an electrochemical catalyst to form the counter electrode. Cells were fabricated by placing sealing films between the two electrodes, leaving two via holes through which the electrolyte could be injected. The sealing process was see more performed on a hot plate at 100°C for 3 min. Then, the electrolyte was injected into the space between the two Selleckchem Evofosfamide electrodes through via holes. Finally, the via holes were sealed using epoxy with a low-vapor transmission rate. DSSCs with different structures were prepared to examine the

effect of structure on the properties of the DSSC. Sample 1 was fabricated Selleckchem Ruxolitinib with a traditional structure and a single TiO2 photoelectrode layer, which was spin-coated at a rotation rate of 4,000 rpm. Sample 2 also had the traditional structure with a single TiO2 photoelectrode layer, which was spin-coated at a rotation rate of 2,000 rpm. Sample 3 had the sandwich structure of TiO2/graphene/TiO2 on ITO glass, and the deposition of the TiO2 photoeletrodes was performed at rotation rate of 4,000 rpm. Characterization The crystalline microstructure of the products was elucidated using a PANalytical X’Pert Pro DY2840 X-ray diffractometer (PANalytical B.V., Almelo, The Netherlands) with Cu-Kα radiation (λ = 0.1541 nm) in the scanning range 2θ = 30° and 70°. The surface morphology and vertical structure were analyzed using a LEO 1530 field-emission scanning electron

microscope (One Zeiss Drive Thornwood, New York, USA). The optical absorption SB-3CT properties were measured in the range of 300 to 900 nm using a Hitachi U-2001 ultraviolet-visible spectrophotometer (Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan). The photocurrent voltage (I-V) characteristics were measured using a Keithley 2420 programmable source meter under 100 mW cm-2 irradiation (Keithley Instruments Inc., Cleveland, OH, USA). Simulated sunlight was provided by a 500-W xenon lamp (Hong Ming Technology Co, Ltd, Taiwan) that had been fitted with an AM-1.5 filter. The active area of each DSSC, which was exposed to the light, was 0.3 × 0.3 cm2. Results and discussion Figure  1 presents the phase structure of the TiO2 photoelectrodes in the samples. Clearly, most peaks were indexed to anatase TiO2 (JCPDS No. 21-1271). Only one peak, at θ = 27.41°, corresponded to rutile TiO2 (JCPDS No. 76-0317).