A couple of novel donor–π–acceptor dyes based on organometallic ruthenium diacetylide complexes (SL1 and SL2) have been designed and synthesized for use in NiO-based p-type dye-sensitized solar cells (p-DSCs). The optical and electrochemical properties of the dyes were assessed and theoretical calculations were performed to rationalize the experimental data. The best performing dye in NiO-based p-DSC devices is the red dye SL1, which gives a photocurrent density of 2.25 mA cm−2 and maximum IPCE of 18%. This represents a promising result, paving the way for future finely tuned organometallic efficient dyes for such application.
