Chapter 1 - Third-generation solar cells

Abstract

Clean and green energy sources are the need of the hour, as global warming is drastically changing the weather conditions around the world. Renewable or nonconventional energy sources have become the ultimate solution to clean and sustainable energy requirements. The Sun is a source of abundant, clean, and sustainable energy that offers a practical strategy to reduce CO2 emissions. Solar cells are one of the most suitable methods of harvesting solar energy in a sustainable way. Three generations of solar cells have been evolved to harvest sunlight as efficiently as possible. Modified third-generation solar cells, for example, tandem and/or organic–inorganic configurations, are emerging as fourth-generation solar cells to maximize their economic efficiency. This chapter comprehensively covers the basic concepts, performance, and challenges associated with third-generation solar cells. The third generation of solar cells includes organic solar cells, dye-sensitized solar cells, quantum dot solar cells, and perovskite solar cells. We also briefly discuss the rational design of efficient solar devices constructed from advanced materials such as three-dimensional graphene, doped polymers and nanostructured ternary metal sulfides. Limitations in the efficiency of solar cell devices, challenges to improved performance of third-generation solar cells, and future perspectives of photovoltaic technology toward emerging tandem, multijunction, and plasmonic solar cell architectures are also briefly described.