Zinc Oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles were synthesized by hydrothermal method under different conditions and studied various properties. FTIR studies proved the presence of ZnO bonding and purity of the samples. Grain size was found to be decreased with the increase of reaction temperature and increased with reaction time. TEM images show formation of nanorods under same reaction temperature, also nanoflowers and nanospheres for different temperatures. Intensity of luminescence peaks is found to be changed with variation in interplanar spacing. UV–vis spectra helped to identify the increased photon absorption in particles of bigger size. Change in bandgap value is also observed due to the difference in size of nanoparticles.

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Nickel doped Zinc Oxide nanoparticles are synthesised via hydrothermal technique at three different temperatures. XRD analysis shows a decrease in grain size with doping at low temperature and an increase in crystallite size at high temperature. Nano flowers and a mixture of rods and sheets are observed in SEM images. Zinc Oxide nanorods wrapped with Nickel Oxide nano thread and spider web like structures are clearly visible in TEM micrographs. Doping introduced defects in composites which enhanced UV and visible absorption. Composite with an excellent photo absorption property and a noted thermal stability is chosen for fabricating solar cell devices by spin coating and doctor blade techniques which delivered a power conversion efficiency of 3.96% and 2.32% respectively.