High-performance dye-sensitized solar cells using Ag-doped CoS counter electrodes

CoS has been emerging as a promising Pt-free counter electrode (CE) material for dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) due to its satisfactory electrocatalytic properties for redox reactions. However, its low electronic and ionic conductivities have limited its use in DSSCs. The doping of Ag with appropriate amount significantly improved the properties of CoS for application as a CE. Ag-doped CoS samples with various doping amounts were prepared by a facile one-step hydrothermal approach. There were very sharp changes of morphologies and particle sizes after doping different amounts of Ag. It is found that the DSSC fabricated with the 5% Ag-doped CoS CE achieved an impressive power-conversion efficiency (PCE) of 8.35% which was higher than that of the DSSC with a Pt CE (8.17%) by 2.2%, while the DSSC consisting of undoped CoS only exhibited a PCE of 6.93%. Such an enhanced PCE could be attributed to the significantly improved electrochemical activity and mixed conductivity resulting from the Ag dopant. Therefore, the excellent electrocatalytic activity, facile preparation and low material cost of the Ag-doped CoS electrode provide it with promising potential for large-scale production of new-generation DSSCs.