Dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) have attracted interest from chemists in recent years because of their unique advantages: low cost, simple preparation technologies, and high efficiency. Three main chain polymeric metal complexes F, P1, and P2 connected with thienyl(8-hydroxyquinoline)-Cadmium (II) complexes have been synthesized by Heck coupling and characterized by Gel Permeation Chromatography, Fourier transform infrared, 1H NMR, thermogravimetric analysis, TGA, UV-vis, cyclic voltammetry, photoluminescence (PL) emission spectra, and the application of dye sensitizers in DSSCs has been studied. The DSSCs exhibited good performance with a power conversion efficiency of up to 1.77%, under simulated air mass 1.5 G solar irradiation. They possess good stabilities, indicating the polymeric metal complexes are suitable for the fabrication processes of optoelectronic devices. (c) 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2013