Investigation on novel CuS/NiS composite counter electrode for hindering charge recombination in quantum dot sensitized solar cells

To make quantum dot-sensitized solar cells (QDSSCs) more attractive, it is necessary for the power conversion efficiency (PCE) to be comparable to those of other emerging solar cells. Currently, copper sulfide (CuS) and nickel sulfide (NiS) are commonly used counter electrodes (CEs) in high-efficiency QDSSCs because of their low toxicity, environmental compatibility, and superior electrocatalytic activity in the presence of polysulfide electrolyte. For the first time, novel CuS/NiS electrodes were prepared by facile chemical bath deposition method. This article describes the effect of NiS layer on CuS film for preventing the recombination process to enhance the performance of QDSSCs. Under one sun illumination, the CE with the optimized CuS/NiS composite film exhibits higher short-circuit current density (J(sc)), open-circuit voltage (V-oc), and PCE of 12.47 mA cm(-2), 0.599 V, and 4.19%, respectively. These values are much higher than those of bare CuS (2.73%), NiS (1.82%), and Pt CEs (1.16%). This enhancement is mainly attributed to the improved surface morphology, higher sulfur atomic percentage with Cu vacancies, rapid electron transport, and lower electron recombination rate for the polysulfide electrolyte. Characterization with, cyclic voltammetry, and Tafel polarization was performed to study the reasons for efficient CE performance. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.