Novel counter electrodes based on NiP-plated glass and Ti plate substrate for dye-sensitized solar cells

Novel counter electrodes based on NiPplated glass and Ti plate substrate were prepared by thermal decomposition of H2PtCl6. Their properties and application in dye-sensitized solar cells were investigated. Platinized Ti plate electrode (Pt/TP electrode) and platinized NiP-plated glass electrode (Pt/NiP electrode) exhibited the same electrochemical activity for triiodide reduction as platinized fluorinedope tin oxide (FTO) conducting glass electrode (Pt/FTO electrode). However, Pt/NiP electrode and Pt/TP electrode have the advantage over the Pt/FTO electrode in increasing the light reflectance and reducing the sheet resistance, which resulted to improve the light harvest efficiency and the fill factor of the dyesensitized solar cells effectively. Examination of the anodic dissolution indicated the good stability of the Pt/NiP electrode and Pt/TP electrode in the electrolyte containing iodide/triiodide.