Characterization of Synthetic Ni(II)-Xylenol Complex as a Photosensitizer for Wide-Band Gap ZnO Semiconductor Electrodes

Abstract

A synthetic NiIIL(H2O)2complex (L = xylenol orange, 3,3′-bis [N,N-di(carboxymethyl)-aminomethyl]-o-cresol sulphonapthalein (H2O)2), which is a water-soluble dye, has been studied for its photosensitizing properties atn-ZnO semiconductor electrodes prepared by sol-gel techniques. The absorption spectrum of aqueous solution of this complex exhibits a strong peak at 563 nm and a shoulder at 526 nm wavelength of light. The sandwich-type dye-sensitized solar cell using ZnO semiconducting thin film with test dye anchored onto it showed the cell output as follows:VOC=0.506 V,Jsc=1.68 mA cm−2, andFF=0.41under illumination with full spectrum of light (intensity 520 mW cm−2), while on illumination with visible light (λ>420 nm, intensity 480 mW cm−2),VOC=0.506 V,Jsc=1.4 mA cm−2, andFF=0.49were achieved. Maximum incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency for the present system was found to be 8.7% at wavelength (λmax=563 nm).

Natural Pigments from Plants Used as Sensitizers for TiO2Based Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

“…The performance of the cell is primarily dependent on the material and quality of the semiconductor electrode and the sensitizer dye used for the fabrication of the cell. For their application in DSSCs, many wide band-gap metal oxide semiconductors have been studied but most extensively employed semiconductors are TiO 2 and ZnO [3][4][5][6][7][8]. Titanium dioxide (TiO 2 ) has several advantages, including longterm thermal and photostability.…”