Advantages of polymer electrolytes towards dye-sensitized solar cells

The most commonly known renewable energy sources include the wind, wave, hydroelectric, biomass, and solar energy. Photovoltaic cells are divided into three main categories and referred to as generations of photovoltaic cells. The first generation of photovoltaic includes the monocrystalline silicon and multicrystalline silicon based solar cells. The second generation solar cells include amorphous silicon-based thin film solar cells - cadmium telluride/cadmium sulfide (CdTe/CdS) solar cells and copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) solar cells. In third generation solar cells, the electrolyte plays a vital role in deciding the power conversion efficiency as well as stability. Liquid electrolytes are the conventional type of electrolyte and the most widely used transport medium. Polymer electrolytes are ionic conductors prepared by the dissolution of salts in a suitable polymer. Polymer electrolytes are divided into solid polymer electrolyte (SPE), gel polymer electrolyte (GPE) and composite polymer electrolyte (CPE).