Regular Papers
Preparation and Optimization of Nanostructured TiO2 Thin Films for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell Applications
2013 Volume 38 Issue 2 Pages 291-294
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2013 Volume 38 Issue 2 Pages 291-294
TiO2 nanowires and nanorods were prepared on ITO coated glass substrates by hydrothermal method. TiO2 films were prepared under different preparation conditions. In this paper, effect of growth conditions on the surface morphological and structural properties of anatase and rutile TiO2 films was studied. XRD results showed that the pure rutile TiO2 phase was grown in HCl medium. In contrast, pure anatase TiO2 phase was grown in HNO3 medium. The crystallinity of TiO2 films increased as the reaction temperature was increased from 120 to 160°C. The phase transformation from rutile to anatase was observed when the volume concentration of titanium n-butoxide (TNB) increased from 0.5 to 1.0 ml. Scanning electron microscopy images showed that the morphology of the final product was strongly dependent on the experimental parameters, such as volume of HCl and annealing temperatures. The nanostructured TiO2 films fabricated by hydrothermal method can be used for dye-sensitized solar cell applications.
