Flexible Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells with High Thermal Resistance Clay Films as Substrates

Dye-sensitized solar cells using two types of clay films with high thermal resistance, flexibility and gas barrier properties were prepared. These films have a microstructure of highly oriented layer-by-layer stacking of mm thick smectite clay crystal and are new materials as substrates for dye-sensitized solar-cell electrodes. A solar-to-electricity conversion efficiency of 1.8% (AM 1.5 illumination) was observed with calcination procedure at 450 degrees C.