We report on solar cells with a cross-sectional layout: TCO/window/Bi2S3/PbS, in which a commercial SnO2 transparent conductive oxide (TCO-PPG Sungate 500); chemically deposited window layers of CdS, ZnS or their oxides; n-type Bi2S3 (100 nm) and p-type PbS (360-550 nm) absorber films constitute the cell structures. The crystalline structure, optical, and electrical properties of the constituent films are presented. The open circuit voltage (V-oc) and short-circuit current density (J(sc)), for 1000 W/m(2) solar radiation, of these solar cells depend on the window layers, and vary in the range, 130-310 mV and 0.5-5 mA/cm(2), respectively. The typical fill factors (FF) of these cells are 0.25-0.42, and conversion efficiency, 0.1-0.4%. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.