Phenothiazine derivatives with various conjugated linkers (furan, thiophene, and 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) were synthesized and used in dye-sensitized solar cells to study the effect of conjugated linkers on device performance. Among them, one with furan as a conjugated linker showed a solar energy-to-electricity conversion efficiency (η) of 6.58%, an improvement of over 24% compared with the T2-1 reference cells' 5.29% under AM 1.5 G irradiation.

Thermal properties of a series of Co β-diketonates have been systematically investigated and it is found that tris(3,5-heptanedionato) cobalt(III) (Co(hd)3) with the lowest melting point among them can be a better precursor than tris(2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-3,5-heptanedionato cobalt(III) (Co(tmhd)3), one of the most popular precursors to date, under suitable conditions. Isothermal TGA study shows that Co(hd)3 would work better at higher temperature, while Co(dmhd)3 would be a better precursor at lower temperature.