Abstract
With the development of society, the demand for energy is increasing significantly, and the environmental problems are becoming more and more serious. Therefore, it is urgent to find efficient and clean new energy. Among the many new energy sources, solar energy has been favoured most for its universality, harmlessness and low cost. In 1991, the photoelectric conversion efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) has been greatly improved, which has attracted the attention. In recent 30 years, the researches on DSSCs have been increasing and expanding. Dye sensitizer is the most important component of DSSC, and also a key issue of researchers. This paper aims to summarize the types, structures and development trends of dye sensitizers, and provide inspiration for us to design and evaluate new dye sensitizers.