About This Lesson
This unit from the U.S. Department of Energy takes students through several introductory lessons designed to gain a better understanding of the 'nano' scale as it relates to the creation of a (dye-sensitized) solar cell (DSSC). The introductory lessons guide students through activities covering volume, surface area and density and exploration of the relationship between these factors. The unit culminates with students building a Gratzel cell, a solar cell employing a layer of nanospheres of TiO2 as the semiconductor and blackberry juice as the light absorber in a non-Si-based solar cell.
