NiS2 as a cost effective counter electrode for dye sensitized solar cell

Abstract Michael Gratzel invented dye sensitized solar cell (DSSC) in 1991. Counter electrode (CE) acts a significant part to convert light energy to solar energy in DSSC. Hydrothermal method was used to prepare an inexpensive nickel sulfide (NiS2) counter electrode to replace expensive platinum CE and it was examined by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance and photovoltaic performance studies. The achieved photo-conversion efficiency of NiS2 based DSSC was 4.55% under 1 sun illumination. This suggests NiS2 nanoparticles could serve as non-precious alternate CE for DSSC applications.