%0 Journal Article
%T Preparation and Characterization of Nanocrystalline CuS Thin Films for Dye-Sensitized Solar cells
%A M. A. Sangamesha
%A K. Pushpalatha
%A G. L. Shekar
%A S. Shamsundar
%J ISRN Nanomaterials
%D 2013
%R 10.1155/2013/829430
%X 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¨C1100£¿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. 1. Introduction Recent research on solar cells has been aimed at lowering the fabrication cost to decrease the price of the energy obtained. In this context, suitable materials should be easily preparable, inexpensive, and must show stable behavior over a long period of operation. The photo electrochemical (PEC) cells provide an economic chemical route for trapping solar energy. Beside the PEC cell, the semiconductor-electrolyte interface may be used for photoelectrolysis, photocatalysis, and photoelectrochemical power generation [1]. Thus the PEC cells composed of dye-sensitized oxides have also been widely investigated. Several natural pigments [2] and synthesized dyes [3] have been identified to fabricate the solar cells. 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]. It is used in a variety of applications, namely, as gas sensor [7] and optoelectronic devises as reported by Nair et al. [6, 8]. Several techniques have been used to produce copper sulphide thin films such as spray pyrolysis [9, 10], successive ionic layer absorption and reaction techniques [11], photochemical deposition [12], elctrodeposition [13], and chemical bath deposition [13¨C16].
%U http://www.hindawi.com/journals/isrn.nanomaterials/2013/829430/