Thermal, Resistive, Optical, And Recombination Loss Mechanisms In Coumarin-343-Based Solid State Dye Sensitized Solar Cells: A Numerical Performance Analysis

Authors

  • Sani Marwan
    Nigerian Defence Academy, Kaduna, Nigeria.
  • Adeyemi Joshua Owolabi
  • Eli Danladi
  • Christiana Onma
  • Rabiu Abubakar Tafida
  • Abdulahi Lawal

Keywords:

Coumarin-343, Solid-State Dye-Sensitized Solar Cell, Thermal Loss, Series Resistance, Shunt Resistance

Abstract

Solid state dye sensitized solar cells (ssDSSCs) based on organic sensitizers offer an attractive route to low cost photovoltaic devices, but their simulated efficiency can be substantially reduced by thermal, resistive, optical, and recombination losses. This work isolates and compares these loss channels in a Coumarin-343 (C343) based ssDSSC using the one dimensional Solar Cell Capacitance Simulator (SCAPS-1D). A FTO/TiO₂/C343/Spiro-OMeTAD/Au reference device was first established and subsequently optimized through electron transport-layer, hole-transport-layer, thickness, and defect-density analyses. Thulium doped TiO₂ and PEDOT:PSS were selected as the preferred electron and hole transport materials, respectively, leading to an optimized FTO/Tm-TiO₂/C343/PEDOT:PSS/Au device with 0.5 μm Tm-TiO₂, 0.7 μm C343, 0.5 μm PEDOT:PSS, and C343 defect density of 1 × 10¹⁵ cm⁻³. The optimized device produced Voc = 1.294 V, Jsc = 9.430 mA cm⁻², FF = 81.90%, and PCE = 9.99%, compared with 3.40% for the reference configuration. Thermal analysis from 300 -360 K showed a small increase in Jsc from 9.43 to 9.69 mA cm⁻² but a fall in Voc from 1.294 to 1.216 V, giving a temperature coefficient of −1.3 mV K⁻¹ for Voc. PCE increased to 10.08% around 330 K before declining at higher temperature. Series resistance analysis showed that increasing Rs from 0 to 5 Ω cm² reduced PCE from 9.99% to 9.58%, mainly through fill factor loss, while Jsc remained essentially unchanged. In contrast, low shunt resistance caused severe voltage and efficiency losses: PCE increased from 0.22% at Rsh = 10¹ Ω cm² to 9.99% at 10⁶ Ω cm², while Voc recovered from 0.094 to about 1.292 V. Additional simulations showed that 10% front reflection reduced Jsc by 10% and peak EQE from 97% to 87%, whereas radiative plus Auger recombination reduced Jsc by 24.35% and PCE to 7.49%. When the loss mechanisms were combined, the simulated PCE fell from an ideal 10.081% to 0.068%. The results identify thermal control, suppression of series and shunt pathways, front-surface optical management, and defect/interface passivation as the dominant requirements for converting the high simulated performance of C343 ssDSSCs into a more realistic device design.

Dimensions

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Published

2026-09-21

How to Cite

Sani Marwan, Owolabi, A. J., Danladi, E., Onma, C., Tafida, R. A., & Lawal, A. (2026). Thermal, Resistive, Optical, And Recombination Loss Mechanisms In Coumarin-343-Based Solid State Dye Sensitized Solar Cells: A Numerical Performance Analysis. Nigerian Journal of Applied Physics, 2(3), 32-45. https://doi.org/10.62292/njap-v2i3-2026-100

Issue

Vol. 2 No. 3 (2026): Nigerian Journal of Applied Physics - Vol. 2 No. 3

Section

Articles
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Copyright (c) 2026 Sani Marwan, Adeyemi Joshua Owolabi, Eli Danladi, Christiana Onma, Rabiu Abubakar Tafida, Abdulahi Lawal

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Sani Marwan, Owolabi, A. J., Danladi, E., Onma, C., Tafida, R. A., & Lawal, A. (2026). Thermal, Resistive, Optical, And Recombination Loss Mechanisms In Coumarin-343-Based Solid State Dye Sensitized Solar Cells: A Numerical Performance Analysis. Nigerian Journal of Applied Physics, 2(3), 32-45. https://doi.org/10.62292/njap-v2i3-2026-100