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Next significant step in perovskite solar cell stability

Perovskite semiconductors guarantee profound effectiveness and minimal expense for sun-based cells. In any case, the semi-natural material is delicate to temperature contrasts, which can rapidly prompt weakness and harm in typical outside use. Adding a dipolar polymer compound to the precursor perovskite arrangement aids in this verification.

This has now been displayed in a review distributed in the journal Science by a global group led by Antonio Lessen, HZB. The efficiencies of the sun-based cells created in this manner are well over 24%, and they barely decrease under fast temperature changes between – 60 and +80 Celsius north of 100 cycles. That relates to around one year of outside use.

The material class of halide perovskites is viewed as an incredible expectation for much more sun-based power at even lower costs. The materials are modest, can be handled into slim films with negligible energy input, and accomplish efficiencies that are altogether higher than those of regular silicon-based cells.

“A PV cell’s inside can reach a temperature of 80 degrees Celsius under sunlight, which rapidly drops to the ambient temperature when it is dark. Due to the significant mechanical stress caused by this, the perovskite microcrystal thin film degrades, resulting in flaws and maybe local phase transitions.”

Prof. Antonio Abate, who heads a large group at HZB.

The objective is 20 years outside of security.

In any case, sun-based modules are supposed to give stable results for no less than 20 years in outside conditions while being exposed to huge temperature changes. Silicon PV deals with this effectively, while the semi-natural perovskites lose execution rather quickly.

“Daylight can warm up within a PV cell to 80 °C; in obscurity, the cell then chills off quickly to the external temperature.” “This triggers huge mechanical burdens in the slim layer of perovskite microcrystals, making deformities and, surprisingly, nearby stage changes, so the meager film loses its quality,” makes sense to Prof. Antonio Lessen, who heads a huge gathering at HZB.

Along with his group and various global accomplices, he has explored a compound variety that essentially works on the strength of the perovskite slim film in various sun-based cell models, among them the p-I-N design, which is regularly somewhat less effective than the more frequently utilized n-I-P engineering.

Credit: G. Li/HZB

Under the scanning electron microscope (SEM), clear voids should be visible at the grain limits of the control perovskite film (left). These deformities can cause mishaps and reduce proficiency. The voids are reduced by b-pV2F (right).

“We improved the device design and cycle boundaries, building on previous results, and finally achieved a conclusive improvement with b-poly(1,1-difluoroethylene) or b-pV2F for short,” says Guixiang Li, a Ph.D. student working under Prof. Lessen’s supervision.b-pV2F particles look like a crisscross chain involving rotating dipoles.

“This polymer appears to fold over the individual perovskite microcrystals in the slim film like a delicate shell, creating a kind of pad against thermomechanical stress,” Lessen explains.

Record effectiveness for the p-I-N design: 24.6%

Truth be told, checking electron magnifying lens pictures shows that in the cells with b-pV2F, the small granules settle somewhat closer. “Also, the dipole chain of b-pV2F works on the vehicle of charge transporters and hence expands the proficiency of the cell,” says Lessen. For sure, they created cells on a lab scale with efficiencies of up to 24.6%, which is a record for the p-I-N design.

The newly created sun-based cells were subjected to 100 cycles of +80 to 60 degrees Celsius temperature and 1000 hours of nonstop, 1-sun identical light.That relates to around one year of outside use.

“Despite these enormous challenges, they eventually achieved 96% proficiency,” Lessen emphasizes. That is now properly aligned. If it is now possible to reduce the losses even more, perovskite-sun-based modules may still be able to produce the majority of their unique result after 20 years; this goal is now within reach. 

More information: Guixiang Li et al, Highly efficient p-i-n perovskite solar cells that endure temperature variations, Science (2023). DOI: 10.1126/science.add7331

Journal information: Science 

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