Abstract
The cobalt silicides were investigated for employment as a catalytic layer for a DSSC. Using an E-gun evaporation process, we prepared a sample of 100 nm-thick cobalt on a p-type Si (100) wafer. To form cobalt silicides, the samples were annealed at temperatures of $300^{\circ}C$, $500^{\circ}C$, and $700^{\circ}C$ for 30 minutes in a vacuum. Four-point probe, XRD, FE-SEM, and CV analyses were used to determine the sheet resistance, phase, microstructure, and catalytic activity of the cobalt silicides. To confirm the corrosion stability, we also checked the microstructure change of the cobalt silicides after dipping into iodide electrolyte. Through the sheet resistance and XRD results, we determined that $Co_2Si$, CoSi, and $CoSi_2$ were formed successfully by annealing at $300^{\circ}C$, $500^{\circ}C$, and $700^{\circ}C$, respectively. The microstructure analysis results showed that all the cobalt silicides were formed uniformly, and CoSi and $CoSi_2$ layers were very stable even after dipping in the iodide electrolyte. The CV result showed that CoSi and $CoSi_2$ exhibit catalytic activities 67 % and 54 % that of Pt. Our results for $Co_2Si$, CoSi, and $CoSi_2$ revealed that CoSi and $CoSi_2$ could be employed as catalyst for a DSSC.
