Abstract
In this work, tailoring the energy band gap (E
g
) of ternary alloyed Pb
1−x
Zn
x
S quantum dots (QDs) for photovoltaic applications has been investigated. Different zinc molar ratios (x: 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3 and 0.4) in Pb
1−x
Zn
x
S QDs were adsorbed onto TiO
2
(titania) nanoporous films using sub-sequential chemical deposition technique. The morphology of the prepared QDs is studied using a scanning and transmission electron microscope. The structural properties were measured using an X-ray diffractometer and an energy dispersive X-ray technique. The optical properties were recorded using a UV–visible spectrophotometer. The optical bowing constant (b) of alloyed Pb
1−x
Zn
x
S has been deduced and equals 1.49 eV. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that the bowing constant of alloyed Pb
1−x
Zn
x
S is determined. The photovoltaic characteristics (short circuit current density J
sc
, open circuit voltage V
oc
, fill factor FF and energy conversion efficiency η) of the assembled alloyed Pb
1−x
Zn
x
S QDs sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs) are measured under AM1.5 conditions. The optimal photovoltaic parameters of the alloyed Pb
1−x
Zn
x
S QDSSCs were found at x = 0.2. The open circuit voltage decay of the assembled QDSSCs is measured. This novel result is attributed to suppressing of the electron–hole pairs recombination processes.