Abstract
A dye-sensitized nanocrystalline copper sulphide (CuS) solar cell is developed using crystal violet (CV) as a photosensitizer. Nanocrystalline CuS thin film is deposited on indium tin oxide- (ITO-) coated glass substrate by chemical bath deposition (CBD) technique. These thin films are characterized for their structural, optical and electrical properties using X-ray diffractometer (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Optical absorbance measurements from UV-visible spectrometer at normal incidence of light in the wavelength range of 320–1100 nm and current-voltage (I-V) measurements were also made. The deposited CuS thin film on ITO-coated glass substrate may be used as a photo electrode in the fabrication of dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC). The carbon soot collected on the substrate is used as a counter electrode. The counter electrode coupled with a dye-sensitized CuS thin film along with a redox electrolyte mixture is used to develop a complete photovoltaic cell. The fill factor and efficiency were evaluated for the developed DSSC.
Highlights
Recent research on solar cells has been aimed at lowering the fabrication cost to decrease the price of the energy obtained
CuS thin films were successfully deposited on indium tin oxide- (ITO-)coated glass substrate by chemical bath deposition (CBD), and it was used to fabricate a dyesensitized CuS solar cell
The X-ray diffractometer (XRD) patterns obtained confirm the Covellite structure to be the main phase in the CuS thin film which would be preferable for the fabrication of solar cells and indicate the presence of secondary phase of Cu9S5 which closely corresponds to Deginite structure
Summary
Recent research on solar cells has been aimed at lowering the fabrication cost to decrease the price of the energy obtained. The dye-sensitized (DS) PEC cell based on nanocrystalline TiO2 [4] and the DSSC with solid hole collectors are reported elsewhere [5] Nanocrystalline metal sulphide such as copper sulphide (CuS), deposited as a thin film on the different substrates, is considered as a promising material for solar energy conversation system, due to their structural and electrical properties [6]. The effects of film thickness on structural, optical, and electrical properties of the as-deposited nanocrystalline copper sulphide thin films [18] and fabrication CuS films at high temperature and its effect on optical property of the film [19] have been reported This technique is the most cost saving and convenient to produce various chalcogenide thin films such as In2S3 [20], CdSe [21], SnS [22], and FeS [23]. Power output characteristics like I-V characteristics and fill factor of the developed DSSC are investigated
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