A Review on Semitransparent Solar Cells for Real-Life Applications Based on Dye-Sensitized Technology

A dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC) is one of the emerging photovoltaic technologies that shows promising prospects in the commercial applications because of its semitransparency, low manufacturing cost, facile fabrication procedures, and good performance under low-light conditions. Despite the aforementioned advantages of DSSC technology, the transition from laboratory to industrial applications is hindered by several major obstacles. This article aims to explore the potential of DSSC technology in real-life applications, namely, building-integrated photovoltaic, indoor energy harvesting, and smart farming, and the research challenges that must be overcome to pave the way for DSSC commercialization. The challenges can be categorized into the long-term stability issue and difficulty related to the scale-up processes. This article also presents insights into the potentials of DSSCs in smart farming and controlled-environment agriculture, which were never been reported before.