Interfacial engineering of nanostructured photoanode in fiber dye-sensitized solar cells for self-charging power systems

Solar cells offer an environmentally sustainable and convenient option for power source of next-generation wearable electronics. Due to the advantages of low cost, easy fabrication and deformation, fiber dye-sensitized solar cells (FDSSCs) are required to be suitable for the available wearable electronics. Herein, through introduced nanopillar arrays over the Ti wire and atomic layer deposition of conformal TiO2 layer to make the photoanode, the energy conversion efficiency of the FDSSCs is improved by 45%. The FDSSCs are combined with planar microsupercapacitor (MSC) clusters to make self-charging power system on a polymer sheet. The interdigital finger electrodes of MSC were obtained in a single-step method by laser-inducing on a polyimide film, and two series can be charged up to 1.8 V in 30 s by the FDSSCs under solar irradiation. This power sheet can be attached to various surfaces such as skin, cloths, and electronic devices for practical applications.

Automated summary

Solar cells, specifically fiber dye-sensitized solar cells (FDSSCs), offer a cost-effective and flexible power source for next-generation wearable electronics. With the introduction of nanopillar arrays and atomic layer deposition of TiO2 layer, the energy conversion efficiency of FDSSCs has been significantly improved. These FDSSCs can be combined with planar microsupercapacitor clusters to create self-charging power systems that can be attached to various surfaces for practical applications.