What difference does a thiophene make? Evaluation of a 4,4′-bis(thiophene) functionalised 2,2′-bipyridyl copper(I) complex in a dye-sensitized solar cell

Solar energy conversion using first row d-block metal coordination compound sensitizers and redox mediators

“…Slight improvement was obtained by using [Cu(5) 2 ] 3À in which [5] 2À (Scheme 14) contains sulfonate anchors. 188 The effects of structural variation in the anchoring domain are known to have a signicant impact on dye performance in DSCs, 41 and Wills et al 189 have shown that the introduction of a thienyl spacer between a 6,6 0 -Me 2 bpy metal-binding domain and a carboxylic acid anchoring group leads to enhanced PCE for DSCs containing the homoleptic dye [Cu( 6) 2 ] + (see Scheme 14 for ligand 6) compared to the previously reported [Cu(1) 2 ] + . 186 In /I À redox mediator were tested.…”

“… 189. have shown that the introduction of a thienyl spacer between a 6,6'-Me 2 bpy metal-binding domain and a carboxylic acid anchoring group leads to enhanced PCE for DSCs containing the homoleptic dye [Cu(6) 2 ] + (see Scheme 14 for ligand 6) compared to the previously reported [Cu(1) 2 ] + .…”

Cyanoacrylic- and (1-cyanovinyl)phosphonic acid anchoring ligands for application in copper-based dye-sensitized solar cells

“…14 We have demonstrated that both phenyl and thiophene spacers are effective; for the latter, improved electron injection is achieved by placing the phosphonic acid group in the 4-rather than the 5-position of the thienyl ring. 15 The benets of the thienyl spacer are also supported by Wills et al 16 Anchoring ligand 1 (Scheme 1) has featured in most of our recent studies of copper(I)-based DSCs. Here, we report the effects on the photoconversion efficiencies of DSCs containing [Cu(L anchor )(L ancillary )] + dyes of replacing the P(O)(OH) 2 anchors in 1 by cyanoacrylic acid or (1-cyanovinyl)phosphonic acid groups (ligands 2 and 3, Scheme 1).…”

Copper Coordination Complexes for Energy-Relevant Applications

“…Wills et al built upon Housecroft's work and presented a homoleptic dye based on a thiophene-substituted bipiridyl ligand [54]. Device efficiency for this dye coupled with a I − /I − 3 redox couple was 1.4%.…”