Patterned ZnO nanowires grown on single layer polystyrene spheres and their application in dye sensitive solar cell

Patterned ZnO nanowires were successfully grown on single layer polystyrene spheres on ITO glass substrate using a low temperature hydrothermal method. Ordered hollow spherical spaces formed between ZnO nanowires layer and the substrate. The patterned ZnO nanowires were used as the photoelectrode of the dye sensitive solar cell (DSSC). The DSSC shows higher open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current as well as better overall efficiency than that of the DSSC based on the ZnO nanowires arrays synthesized under the same condition. The improved performance of the patterned ZnO nanowires DSSC is attributed to the patterned nanowires DSSC architecture, which not only increases the surface area of the photoelectrode, but also depresses the recombination process and increases the light harvesting ability.