Dye-sensitized solar cells with composite ZnO/SnO2 nanoporous electrodes

Composite nanoporous electrodes made of ZnO/SnO₂ nanopowders were fabricated and applied to dye-sensitized solar cells. The morphology and structure of the prepared electrodes was investigated by field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM). It is found that the overall conversion efficiency of DSSCs with composite electrodes was enhanced by almost 32% as compared to DSSCs with pure ZnO electrodes. Adding SnO₂ nanopowders to ZnO nanoporous electrodes improved the stability and microstructure of the whole nanoporous electrodes during the dye absorption, thus enhanced the photovoltaic efficiency of the DSSCs based on ZnO nanoporous electrodes.