A Fabrication Procedure for a CdTe Quantum Dot Printable Hybrid Solar Cell

Solution-based CdTe quantum dots were fabricated following the synthetic protocols devised by Bawendi and co-workers.The nanocrystals, which are spherically shaped, are derived from colloidal solutions having oleic acid and trioctylphosphine as stabilizers.The quantum dots produced exhibit a strong photoluminescence where the wavelength of the luminescence was varied by altering the extraction time from the reaction vessel.Absorbance measurements on the various aliquots exhibit maxima extending from 540 to 663 nm.Transmission electron microscopy indicates that the CdTe nanocrystals are indeed spherical where the ensemble shows a narrow size distribution.Energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy confirmed that cadmium and tellurium are present in a 1:1 ratio.Ink formulation begins by first precipitating the CdTe nanocrystals through centrifugation to produce a fine powder, dissolving the powder in toluene, and then combining the solution produced with the photoactive organic semiconductors P3HT and PCBM.Solar cell fabrication proceeded by first applying the ink mixture to an ITO-coated glass substrate using a Dimatix Materials Printer DMP-2800.Following a high temperature anneal of the ink, the solar cell device fabrication was then completed by applying layers of Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene), poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) and a top gold electrode.The work demonstrates the viability of fabricating a printable solar cell architecture based on CdTe-based quantum dot inks.