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Vanni N, Pò R, Biagini P, Bravetti G, Carallo S, Giuri A, Rizzo A. Formamidinium Perovskite Deposition in Ambient Air Environment for Inverted p-i-n Solar Cells. NANOMATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2024; 14:107. [PMID: 38202562 PMCID: PMC10780378 DOI: 10.3390/nano14010107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/24/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
In order to move towards large-scale fabrication, perovskite solar cells need to detach themselves from strictly controlled environmental conditions and, to this end, fabrication in ambient air is highly desirable. Formamidinium iodide perovskite (FAPI) is one of the most promising perovskites but is also unstable at room temperature, which may make the ambient air deposition more difficult. Herein, we investigated different formulations of pure FAPI for the fabrication of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) in air. We found that formulations using a mixture of N,N-Dimethylformamide (DMF): N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) and only dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) are suitable for the deposition in air. To fabricate inverted p-i-n solar cells, we tested different hole transporting layers (HTLs) and observed the effects on the wettability of the perovskite solution and on the performance. A self-assembly monolayer of 2PACz (2-(9H-Carbazol-9-yl)ethyl]phosphonic acid) was found to be the best option as a HTL, allowing us to achieve efficiencies >15% on both FTO and ITO.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nadir Vanni
- Dipartimento di Matematica e Fisica “E. De Giorgi”, Università del Salento, Campus Ecotekne, via Arnesano, 73100 Lecce, Italy; (N.V.)
- Istituto di Nanotecnologia CNR-NANOTEC c/o Campus Ecotekne, via Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy; (S.C.); (A.G.)
| | - Riccardo Pò
- Renewable Energy, Magnetic Fusion and Material Science Research Center, Istituto Guido Donegani, Eni S.p.A., via Fauser 4, 28100 Novara, Italy (P.B.)
| | - Paolo Biagini
- Renewable Energy, Magnetic Fusion and Material Science Research Center, Istituto Guido Donegani, Eni S.p.A., via Fauser 4, 28100 Novara, Italy (P.B.)
| | - Gianluca Bravetti
- Dipartimento di Matematica e Fisica “E. De Giorgi”, Università del Salento, Campus Ecotekne, via Arnesano, 73100 Lecce, Italy; (N.V.)
- Istituto di Nanotecnologia CNR-NANOTEC c/o Campus Ecotekne, via Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy; (S.C.); (A.G.)
| | - Sonia Carallo
- Istituto di Nanotecnologia CNR-NANOTEC c/o Campus Ecotekne, via Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy; (S.C.); (A.G.)
| | - Antonella Giuri
- Istituto di Nanotecnologia CNR-NANOTEC c/o Campus Ecotekne, via Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy; (S.C.); (A.G.)
| | - Aurora Rizzo
- Istituto di Nanotecnologia CNR-NANOTEC c/o Campus Ecotekne, via Monteroni, 73100 Lecce, Italy; (S.C.); (A.G.)
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Liu H, Xiang L, Gao P, Wang D, Yang J, Chen X, Li S, Shi Y, Gao F, Zhang Y. Improvement Strategies for Stability and Efficiency of Perovskite Solar Cells. NANOMATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 12:3295. [PMID: 36234422 PMCID: PMC9565258 DOI: 10.3390/nano12193295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2022] [Revised: 08/17/2022] [Accepted: 09/20/2022] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Recently, perovskites have garnered great attention owing to their outstanding characteristics, such as tunable bandgap, rapid absorption reaction, low cost and solution-based processing, leading to the development of high-quality and low-cost photovoltaic devices. However, the key challenges, such as stability, large-area processing, and toxicity, hinder the commercialization of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). In recent years, several studies have been carried out to overcome these issues and realize the commercialization of PSCs. Herein, the stability and photovoltaic efficiency improvement strategies of perovskite solar cells are briefly summarized from several directions, such as precursor doping, selection of hole/electron transport layer, tandem solar cell structure, and graphene-based PSCs. According to reference and analysis, we present our perspective on the future research directions and challenges of PSCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongliang Liu
- Guangdong Engineering Research Center of Optoelectronic Functional Materials and Devices, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
| | - Ling Xiang
- Guangdong Engineering Research Center of Optoelectronic Functional Materials and Devices, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
| | - Peng Gao
- Tianjin Institute of Power Sources, Tianjin 300384, China
| | - Dan Wang
- Guangdong Engineering Research Center of Optoelectronic Functional Materials and Devices, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
| | - Jirui Yang
- Guangdong Engineering Research Center of Optoelectronic Functional Materials and Devices, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
| | - Xinman Chen
- Guangdong Engineering Research Center of Optoelectronic Functional Materials and Devices, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
| | - Shuti Li
- Guangdong Engineering Research Center of Optoelectronic Functional Materials and Devices, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
| | - Yanli Shi
- Library of South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China
| | - Fangliang Gao
- Guangdong Engineering Research Center of Optoelectronic Functional Materials and Devices, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
| | - Yong Zhang
- Guangdong Engineering Research Center of Optoelectronic Functional Materials and Devices, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, China
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Nanostructured Top Contact as an Alternative to Transparent Conductive Oxides in Tandem Perovskite/c-Si Solar Cells. APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/app12041854] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
In the competition of solar cell efficiency, besides top-performance multijunction cells, tandem cells based on perovskites are also breaking efficiency records to enter into the 30% range. Their design takes advantage of the rapid development of perovskite cells, and the good sharing of the available spectrum between the perovskite, absorbing at short wavelengths, and the c-Si or similar lower band gap material, working at longer wavelengths. In this paper, we present a novel tandem solar cell that combines crystalline silicon (c-Si) and perovskites cells. We analyzed the device with computational electromagnetism based on the finite element method. Our design arranges the perovskite solar cell as a multilayer 1D grating, which is terminated with a gold thin film (top metallic contact). This multilayer nanostructure is placed on top of the c-Si cell and a thin protective dielectric layer of aluminum nitride covers the whole device. The short-circuit current of the perovskite cell is maximized by maintaining the current-matching conditions with the output from the c-Si cell. This optimization considers the geometrical parameters of the grating: period and thickness of the active layer of the perovskite cell. We compared the simulated short-circuit current of this device to the planar tandem solar cell with indium tin oxide (top contact). The comparison shows a slight increment, around 3%, of our device’s performance. Moreover, it has the potential capability to circumvent postprocessing procedures used with transparent contact oxides, which can reduce the device’s final efficiency. Furthermore, our proposed design can take advantage of photolithographic and nanoimprint techniques, enabling large-scale production at a relatively low cost.
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Elshorbagy MH, Sánchez PA, Cuadrado A, Alda J, Esteban Ó. Resonant nano-dimer metasurface for ultra-thin a-Si:H solar cells. Sci Rep 2021; 11:7179. [PMID: 33785847 PMCID: PMC8009869 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-86738-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2020] [Accepted: 03/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Low-cost hydrogenated amorphous silicon solar cells (a-Si:H) can perform better and be more competitive by including nanostructures. An optimized nano-dimer structure embedded in close contact with the back electrode of an aSi:H ultra-thin solar cells can enhance the deliverable short-circuit current up to 27.5 %. This enhancement is the result of an increase in the absorption at the active layer, that is the product of an efficient scattering from the nanostructure. From our calculations, the nano-dimer structure must be made out of a high-index of refraction material, like GaP. The evaluation of the scattering and absorption cross section of the structure supports the calculated enhancement in short-circuit current, that is always accompanied by a decrease in the total reflectance of the cell, which is reduced by about 50 %.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahmoud H Elshorbagy
- Photonics Engineering Group, University of Alcalá, Alcalá de Henares, 28801, Madrid, Spain.,Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Minia University, El Minya, 61519, Egypt
| | - Pablo A Sánchez
- Photonics Engineering Group, University of Alcalá, Alcalá de Henares, 28801, Madrid, Spain
| | - Alexander Cuadrado
- Escuela de Ciencias Experimentales y Tecnología, University Rey Juan Carlos, Móstoles, 28933, Madrid, Spain
| | - Javier Alda
- Applied Optics Complutense Group, University Complutense of Madrid, Arcos de Jalón, 118, 28037, Madrid, Spain
| | - Óscar Esteban
- Photonics Engineering Group, University of Alcalá, Alcalá de Henares, 28801, Madrid, Spain.
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Enabling selective absorption in perovskite solar cells for refractometric sensing of gases. Sci Rep 2020; 10:7761. [PMID: 32385355 PMCID: PMC7210928 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-63570-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2019] [Accepted: 03/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Perovskite solar cells are currently considered a promising technology for solar energy harvesting. Their capability to deliver an electrical signal when illuminated can sense changes in environmental parameters. We have numerically analyzed the variation of the current delivered by a perovskite cell as a function of the index of refraction of air, that is in contact with the front surface of the cell. This calculation identifies which geometrical and material structures enhance this behavior. After replacing the top transparent electrode of a solar cell by an optimized subwavelength metallic grating, we find a large variation in the responsivity of the cell with respect to the change in the index of refraction of the surrounding medium. Such a refractometric sensor can be interrogated electronically, avoiding the cumbersome set-ups of spectral or angular interrogation methods. We present an adaptation of the performance parameters of refractometric sensors (sensitivity and figure of merit) to the case of opto-electronic interrogation methods. The values of sensitivity and Figure of Merit are promising for the development of refractometric perovskite-based sensors.
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Elshorbagy MH, López-Fraguas E, Chaudhry FA, Sánchez-Pena JM, Vergaz R, García-Cámara B. A monolithic nanostructured-perovskite/silicon tandem solar cell: feasibility of light management through geometry and materials selection. Sci Rep 2020; 10:2271. [PMID: 32041982 PMCID: PMC7010828 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-58978-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2019] [Accepted: 01/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
The use of several layers of different materials, taking advantage of their complementary bandgap energies, improves the absorption in multi-junction solar cells. Unfortunately, the inherent efficiency increment of this strategy has a limitation: each interface introduces optical losses. In this paper, we study the effects of materials and geometry in the optical performance of a nanostructured hybrid perovskite - silicon tandem solar cell. Our proposed design increases the performance of both subcells by managing light towards the active layer, as well as by minimizing reflections losses in the interfaces. We sweep both refractive index and thickness of the transport layers and the dielectric spacer composing the metasurface, obtaining a range of these parameters for the proper operation of the device. Using these values, we obtain a reduction in the optical losses, in particular they are more than a 33% lower than those of a planar cell, mainly due to a reduction of the reflectivity in the device. This approach leads to an enhancement in the optical response, widens the possibilities for the manufacturers to use different materials, and allows wide geometrical tolerances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahmoud H Elshorbagy
- GDAF-UC3M, Department Tecnología Electrónica, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Avda. Universidad, 30. Leganés, Madrid, Spain
- Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Minia University, 61519, El-Minya, Egypt
| | - Eduardo López-Fraguas
- GDAF-UC3M, Department Tecnología Electrónica, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Avda. Universidad, 30. Leganés, Madrid, Spain
| | - Fateh A Chaudhry
- GDAF-UC3M, Department Tecnología Electrónica, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Avda. Universidad, 30. Leganés, Madrid, Spain
| | - José Manuel Sánchez-Pena
- GDAF-UC3M, Department Tecnología Electrónica, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Avda. Universidad, 30. Leganés, Madrid, Spain
| | - Ricardo Vergaz
- GDAF-UC3M, Department Tecnología Electrónica, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Avda. Universidad, 30. Leganés, Madrid, Spain
| | - Braulio García-Cámara
- GDAF-UC3M, Department Tecnología Electrónica, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Avda. Universidad, 30. Leganés, Madrid, Spain.
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