Performance improvement of a tin(II) dioxide-modified electrode for the dye-sensitized solar cell by the addition of zinc(II) oxide and niobium(V) oxide

► The SnO2 + ZnO mixture formed fair electrode for DSSC than SnO2/ZnO bilayer. ► Mixing Nb2O5 to SnO2 + ZnO improved Jsc, Voc, and Pmax for N3-sensitized cell. ► N3 highly adsorbed on SnO2 + ZnO and SnO2 + ZnO + Nb2O5 electrodes. ► BET surface area and FE-SEM supported rough surfaces of SnO2 + ZnO.