Thiocyanate-Free Ruthenium(II) Sensitizer with a Pyrid-2-yltetrazolate Ligand for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells

The synthesis of the new complex [Ru(Tetrazpy)(dcbpy)2]Cl is reported, along with its spectroscopical, electrochemical, and theoretical characterization. The first dye-sensitized solar cell device with this complex has been prepared, leading to a 3% of conversion efficiency, promising data considering the simplicity of the Tetrazpy ligand.