Zinc oxide photoelectrodes and methods of fabrication

摘要

A substrate-supported photoelectrode, which includes an essentially two-dimensional transparent conductive oxide (TCO) film supported by a substrate, wherein the film is doped with at least one element of Group III, and one or more single crystal essentially one-dimensional nanostructures that are integral with the film and grown upwardly therefrom without a boundary layer therebetween, wherein the film and the nanostructures are essentially identical in composition and include zinc oxide or a zinc oxide alloy. Methods for preparing the substrate-supported photoelectrode and solar cells incorporating the substrate-supported photoelectrode are also provided.

主权项

1. A substrate-supported three-dimensional (3-D) photoelectrode comprising:
an essentially two-dimensional (2-D) transparent zinc oxide electrode film disposed directly on a non-conductive substrate without a boundary layer therebetween, wherein said 2-D film is doped with at least one element selected from the group consisting of Al, Ga, and B; and an array of single crystal essentially one-dimensional (1-D) nanostructures that are integral with said 2-D film and extend upwardly therefrom without a boundary layer therebetween, wherein said one or more 1-D nanostructures are not in direct contact with the substrate and are aligned normal to said 2-D film, wherein said nanostructures comprise a zinc oxide based alloy.