DFT and SCAPS-1D investigation of RbGeI <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" altimg="si91.svg" display="inline" id="d1e1146"> <mml:msub> <mml:mrow/> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>3</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:msub> </mml:math> /MoTe <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" altimg="si90.svg" display="inline" id="d1e1154"> <mml:msub> <mml:mrow/> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:msub> </mml:math> VdW heterostructure for enhanced electronic, optical, and photovoltaic performance in perovskite solar cells

Strategies to improve the performance of perovskite solar cells with Spiro-OMeTAD as HTM: A comprehensive review

Long-term performance of perovskite solar cells in low-power indoor energy harvesting applications

Isopropanol-modulated ethyl acetate green antisolvent for enhancing the performance of CsPbBr3 perovskite solar cells

Field performance and durability tests of perovskite solar cells loaded with fixed resistors

Accelerating perovskite solar cell performance prediction with machine learning on existing experimental data

Two-dimensional transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs) (2D TMDs) have emerged as promising interlayer materials between SnO2 electron transport layer (ETL) and perovskite absorbers as they can effectively modulate the energy levels of SnO2 and facilitate the growth of perovskite crystals. However, the limited affinity of 2D TMDs for the SnO2 surface can result in inadequate coverage, which can adversely affect the performance of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). This study addresses this issue by incorporating polyacrylonitrile (PAN) to enhance the surface affinity of 2D tungsten selenide (WSe2). By utilizing the excellent dispersibility of the polymer, the PAN-WSe2 composite film achieves uniform dispersion and high surface coverage on the SnO2 layer. WSe2 features surface free of dangling bonds, a tunable electronic band structure, adjustable functional groups, and intrinsic compactness. These characteristics enable WSe2 to regulate SnO2's energy levels, passivate defects in the SnO2 ETL and functional layer, and alleviate interfacial stress due to its lattice matching with perovskite. This synergy results in perovskite films exhibiting higher crystallinity and lower defect density. Compared to SnO2-based PSCs, PAN-WSe2-modified PSCs demonstrate a significant enhancement in the power conversion efficiency, achieving an open-circuit voltage (VOC) of 1.18 V. Furthermore, after storage in nitrogen for 3800 h, PAN-WSe2-based PSCs retain 95% of their initial efficiency, highlighting their stability and potential for long-term applications.

At present, the power conversion efficiency of perovskite solar cells has exceeded 27%, attracting increasing attention from both academia and industry. However, fabricating high-efficiency devices typically requires inert atmospheres, which inevitably increase manufacturing costs and hinder large-scale commercialization of perovskite solar cells. This review systematically summarizes recent progress in the fabrication of perovskite solar cells under ambient air conditions. The effects of ambient environmental factors on perovskite precursor solutions and perovskite films are discussed in detail. Special attention is devoted to systematically analyzing different strategies, including buried-interface, bulk, and top-surface treatments for perovskite films, and their impact on the performance of perovskite solar cells fabricated in ambient air. Finally, the current challenges associated with ambient-air fabrication are summarized, along with a feasibility analysis and a perspective on future development.

Improving the performance of perovskite solar cells by incorporating NiO/rGO nanocomposite into CH3NH3PbI3

What Limits the Performance of Tin Perovskite Solar Cells? A Perspective from Energy Levels and Interfacial Alignment

The performance of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is strongly governed by device architecture and the optoelectronic properties of constituent materials. In this work, a two-dimensional (2D) finite element method (FEM) simulation is employed to investigate a single-junction PSC incorporating a stacked bilayer perovskite absorber and engineered hole transport layers (HTLs), with the aim of enhancing light harvesting and charge transport.To extend the absorption spectrum, a bilayer absorber composed of MAPbI₃ and MASnI₃ is introduced, leading to an increase in short-circuit current density (Jsc) from 17.5 to 18.34mA/cm2 and an improvement in power conversion efficiency (PCE) from 13.31 to 15.01%. The MASnI3 layer primarily acts as a complementary absorber in the near-infrared region while simultaneously modifying the interfacial band alignment, resulting in reduced non-radiative recombination losses. Furthermore, poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and P3HT/graphene (P3HT/Gr) nanocomposites with graphene weight ratios of 1, 3, and 5% are employed as HTLs to improve carrier extraction. The incorporation of graphene enhances charge transport through increased electrical conductivity and percolation-assisted pathways within the HTL. The optimized device with 5% graphene-doped P3HT exhibits an open-circuit voltage (Voc) of 1.025V and a maximum PCE of 17.79%. These results demonstrate that the synergistic integration of a bilayer perovskite absorber and graphene-enhanced HTLs provides an effective strategy for improving PSC performance while maintaining a single-junction device architecture.

This paper investigates the stability of perovskite films under bonding conditions, focusing on the impact of bonding temperature on the electrical, morphological, and elemental characteristics of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) incorporating a barium–strontium titanate (BST) barrier layer. This study aimed to elucidate the interdiffusion phenomena at interfaces and their effect on device performance. We found that increasing the bonding temperature significantly degrades PSC performance, with efficiencies dropping from 21% at 100 °C to 65% at 180 °C relative to unbonded devices. A critical bonding temperature of 150 °C was identified, which correlates with a pronounced drop in short-circuit current and a peak in series resistance, phenomena primarily attributed to severe elemental interdiffusion and defect formation at the interfaces. Morphological (SEM) and elemental (EDS) analyses confirmed the temperature-dependent nature of interdiffusion across the Au/BST/perovskite interfaces. These findings underscore the critical role of bonding temperature in triggering interfacial degradation, a factor that mediates the stability of BST-interfaced PSCs during packaging.

Interfacial bidentate passivation by a hydrophobic bipyridine molecule for boosting the performance of perovskite solar cells

Ionic liquid-assisted perovskite crystallization regulation and dual-interface modification for enhancing the performance of inorganic perovskite solar cells

Perovskite materials, typically organic lead halides, have been used as absorber materials for the manufacturing of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) in recent years, resulting in higher PCE (photo-conversion efficiency). Organic lead halides are exceptional light absorbers owing to its impressive optoelectronic behavior, including higher absorption coefficients, and a sharp optical band gap. The primary roadblock to the commercialization of PS cells, despite their high efficiency, is their durability, and thermal degradation, greater sensitivity to moisture, and toxicity from the inclusion of hazardous components such as lead (Pb). In this review, the prevailing understanding of how PS cells might deteriorate when exposed to heat, oxygen, moisture, and light (UV)is examined, along with the methods researchers have used to increase PS cell durability, such as compositional tuning and encapsulation. Ion migration within the perovskite absorber layer and its interfaces is the primary cause of layered or interfacial instability in PS cells, reducing device stability and accelerating degradation. External factors such as temperature, light, and electric fields can induce intrinsic ion migration, leading to hysteresis and increased interface defect densities, which can impair device performance over time. The review examines ways for improving PSC performance, stability, and commercial feasibility.

Tin oxide (SnO2) has been widely used as an electron transport layer (ETL) in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) due to the excellent charge transport properties. In this work, we present a comprehensive computational and experimental investigation of a low-temperature strategy for developing Mg-doped SnO2 (Mg-SnO2) as an ETL to enhance the performance of indoor perovskite solar cells (i-PSCs). Experimental results demonstrate that Mg incorporation enhances optical transparency, increases the bandgap, and improves charge transport by reducing charge recombination at the ETL/perovskite interface. These enhancements lead to superior PCEs, achieving 35.54% under indoor LED illumination and 20.28% under standard one sun conditions, significantly outperforming undoped SnO2-based devices. Complementary density functional theory (DFT) simulations support the experimental findings, revealing that Mg doping decreases deep trap states, and contribute to improved ETL conductivity. The strong correlation between theoretical predictions and experimental outcomes underscores the effectiveness of Mg-SnO2 as a high-performance and stable ETL for indoor photovoltaic applications. This study establishes a practicalpathway for developing optimized Mg-doped electron transport layer for efficient indoor light harvesting.

Defect-induced nonradiative recombination and poor operational stability remain major challenges for methylammonium lead iodide (MAPI) perovskite solar cells. Here, we demonstrate polyaniline (PANI) in its emeraldine base form as a multifunctional additive to simultaneously improve film quality, charge-carrier dynamics, device performance, and stability of MAPI perovskites. PANI incorporation enhances crystallinity and grain size without altering the intrinsic bandgap (∼1.6eV). X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy reveals strong Lewis acid-base coordination between the amine/imine groups of PANI and undercoordinated Pb2+ defect sites, leading to effective defect passivation. Consequently, PANI-modified films exhibit enhanced optical absorption, increased photoluminescence intensity, and prolonged charge-carrier lifetimes. The optimized MAPI_30 film shows an increase in average carrier lifetime from 813.4 to 971.6ns, indicating suppressed nonradiative recombination. Interfacial PL/TRPL studies further confirm efficient electron extraction at the perovskite/TiO2 interface. These improvements translate into enhanced device performance in HTL-free perovskite solar cells, achieving a power conversion efficiency of 11.55% and an open-circuit voltage of 1.04V, compared to 9.41% for pristine MAPI. Moreover, PANI-modified films exhibit excellent thermal stability at 85°C for 48h and strong photostability under continuous illumination. This work establishes polyaniline as a simple and scalable strategy for developing efficient and durable perovskite solar cells.

This work proposes the doping of bi-electron transport layers consisting of TiO2/SnO2 with iron to facilitate electron movement and recombination reduction, which results in increases in power conversion efficiency and stability enhancement. Two different PSC structures are used: device 1—FTO/TiO2/SnO2/MAPbI3/Spiro-OMETAD/Ag; device 2, a modified device—FTO/TiO2/SnO2 + Fe/MAPbI3/Spiro-OMETAD/Ag. Characterization analysis revealed an improvement in perovskite crystallinity in the modified device; this leads to reductions in trap state density and the recombination of charges that enhance charge extraction. UV-vis absorbance enhancement in the modified device revealed an enhancement in the perovskite layer morphology and good coverage. As a result, PSCs with a short circuit current of 23.35 mA/cm2, open circuit voltage of 1.07 V, fill factor of 0.73, and high PCE of 18.17% are obtained from device 2, compared to PSCs with only 22.13 mA/cm2, 1.03 V, 0.7, and 16.053% for device 1 without Fe doping, respectively. The results reveal that the device based on Fe doping is more stable than the pristine one under stability tests with regard to aging, thermal, stress and prolonged light.

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) exhibit promising power conversion efficiencies and strong feasibility for large‐scale manufacturing. However, the energy‐level mismatch between the perovskite layer and charge transport layers impedes charge carrier collection at their interfaces and compromises device performance, an issue that is further exacerbated by the high density of defects on the perovskite surface. Herein, we report a facile molecular diffusion strategy that achieves the synergistic effects of gradient energy‐level alignment and defect passivation at the upper interface of the perovskite layer. The functional molecule (2‐(9H‐carbazol‐9‐yl)ethyl)phosphonic acid (2PACz) reduces the surface roughness of the perovskite layer, fosters improved contact with the hole transport layer, and thereby facilitates hole injection and collection under gradient energy‐level configuration. Additionally, the incorporation of the 2PACz molecule passivates surface defects on the perovskite layer, prolonging charge carrier lifetime and mitigating nonradiative recombination. Consequently, the PSCs modified with 2PACz exhibit a notable efficiency enhancement, rising from 19.17% to 22.45%. More importantly, the unencapsulated 2PACz‐modified devices retain 82% of their initial efficiency following 2064 h of aging under inert conditions. This work thus presents a novel strategy for further boosting the performance and stability of PSCs.

In this paper, we developed a opto-electro-thermal model using the 3D finite element method (FEM) in order to assess the temperature-dependent performance of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). The FEM-based model we developed is fully coupled, allowing us to model the optical absorption, charge transport, and heat generation processes all at once, which will provide a more precise evaluation of device performance. Four perovskite absorber materials (MASnI[Formula: see text], MAPbI[Formula: see text], CsPbI[Formula: see text], and CsSnI[Formula: see text]) were evaluated based on three heat generation mechanisms: Joule heating, non-radiative recombination, and thermalization. Based on the proposed model, the extent of temperature rise within the device and its impact on device performance-primarily open-circuit voltage ([Formula: see text]) and power conversion efficiency (PCE) are assessed. The simulation results show that the temperature-dependent performance of the PSC, varies according to the absorption layer material, as each type of absorber showed unique thermal behavior. In particular, CsSnI[Formula: see text] exhibited notable temperature-dependent performance under thermal coupling, with a [Formula: see text] reduction of only 2.38% and a PCE variation of 9.12%, showing a high photovoltaic response but higher temperature sensitivity under temperature variation compared to CsPbI[Formula: see text].