This study examines a manufacturing process for the photoelectrode material of dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) intending to increase efficiency through the surface plasmon resonance phenomenon of nanoparticles with a composite structure made of Ag and TiO₂. This invention involves the use of Ag and TiO₂ nanoparticles in the solar cell. These nanoparticles cause surface plasmon resonance, which amplifies and scatters incident solar energy, enhancing the dye’s rate of light absorption. It also makes it possible to absorb energy in wavelength ranges that were previously difficult to do, which increases efficiency. Centrifugal separation and heat synthesis are used to create the composite metal structures, and certain combinations are used to decide the particle morphologies. To increase the efficiency of organic solar cells and DSSC, the Ag/TiO₂ composite structure is therefore quite likely to be used.

We present the structural and optical properties of Au@TiO₂ core-shell microsphere structure prepared by a hydrothermal synthesis method. As a way to improve the efficiency of organic solar cells, the Au@TiO₂ core-shell microsphere was synthesized to use the local surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) phenomenon. The synthesized results were confirmed to have the Au@TiO₂ core-shell structure using a high-resolution transmission electron microscopy. An absorption was observed to occur at 527 nm belonging to the visible light region using a visible light spectroscopy, which supports the LSPR phenomenon. We suggest that the Au@TiO₂ core-shell microsphere is highly likely to be applied to organic solar cells including dye-sensitized solar cells. In addition, we expect it to be widely used not only in the energy but also in the bio as well as in the environmental fields.