Perovskite applications - Page 7

Flexell Space, an in-house venture of Hanwha Systems, has announced that it has signed a letter of intent (LOI) with Airbus Defence and Space GmbH (Airbus) to develop next-generation space solar cell modules using perovskite/CIGS tandem solar cell technology. This collaboration aims to revolutionize the efficiency and weight of space solar cells, marking a significant milestone in the aerospace industry.

Through this agreement, Flexell Space and Airbus plan to design and develop space solar cell modules that are more than half the weight of existing models while maintaining performance and efficiency. By applying Flexell Space's tandem solar cell technology, the new solar cells will aim to offer low cost, high efficiency, rapid production, and flexibility.

Researchers from Shenzhen University recently addressed the stability issue of organic–inorganic hybrid perovskites, which the team says is currently a barrier to their widespread commercial application in optoelectronic devices. In addition to enhancing perovskite stability, the real-time detection of aging status, aimed at monitoring the aging progression, holds paramount importance for both fundamental research and the commercialization of organic–inorganic hybrid perovskites.

Schematic diagram of the THz-TDS system. Image from:  Frontiers of Optoelectronics 

In their recent work, the team examined the aging status of perovskite in real-time by using terahertz time-domain spectroscopy. This technique is based on the resonant absorption of terahertz waves by phonons in the perovskite. As perovskites age, the intensity of phonon vibration modes associated with the Pb-I bonds decreases, leading to changes in the absorption peaks of terahertz waves at specific frequencies. Based on this, they proposed using the intensity of these terahertz absorption peaks as an indicator to measure the ageing degree of perovskites in real-time.

As the area of perovskite films and devices increases, their performance tends to deteriorate - which researchers from the Chinese Academy of Science (CAS), University of Science and Technology of China and Dalian University of Technology explain can be linked to defects that accumulate at the bottom surface without proper passivation. In an attempt to address this issue, the team introduced a unique molecule (1-(4-Fluorophenyl)−2-pyrrolidone, or FPP) as an additive in large-area blade-coating perovskite films. 

During the top-down crystallization process, the FPP molecule forms an intermediate phase with the perovskite components and subsequently self-deposits at the bottom surface. Consequently, the crystallization kinetics of the large-area thin films are regulated, and the bottom surface is effectively and uniformly passivated in one single-step processing. 

Eindhoven University of Technology researchers have developed a multiscale computational framework for scaling up perovskite photovoltaics from cell scale to building integration. 

The novel framework includes three key modeling components: (i) cell scale, incorporating a coupled optical-electrical-thermal model to characterize performance and hysteresis of small-area perovskite solar cells, (ii) module scale, designing monolithically interconnected perovskite minimodules and quantifying upscaling losses, and (iii) building scale, assessing complex interactions between environmental factors and building-integrated perovskite photovoltaics.

Sekisui Chemical and TERRA recently announced that they have commenced the first joint demonstration test in Japan to install film-type perovskite solar cells for agrivoltaics (solar sharing) at Sosa City, Chiba Prefecture on August 2, 2024.

Sekisui Chemical has created a 30 cm-wide roll-to-roll manufacturing process utilizing its original “sealing, film formation, materials and process technology,” and has reportedly confirmed 10 years equivalent of outdoor durability, which is critical to the development of film-type perovskite solar cells. Furthermore, this manufacturing process has been successfully used to produce film-type perovskite solar cells with a power generation efficiency of 15.0%. Development is being accelerated to further improve durability and power generation efficiency, as well as to establish manufacturing technology for 1 m-wide rolls.

An international team of researchers, including ones from the University of Toronto, University of Toledo, Northwestern University, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, KAUST and more, recently developed an all-perovskite tandem device that is said to show reduced recombination losses in the cell’s bottom device and excellent stability.

Image credit: Northwestern University
 

To improve the perovskite solar cell’s surface, the scientists created partially non-conductive and non-functional areas that protect the perovskite area underneath from becoming defective. The team examined the addition of diamine to improve the perovskite solar cell’s surface. The scientists found that the process made the surface more stable and improved the overall performance, resulting in a power conversion efficiency of 27.4% with better stability.

Researchers from China's Beijing Institute of Technology, Peking University, Central South University, Jiangnan University and Auner Technology have developed a unique binary 2D perovskite passivation approach and used it to fabricate a monolithic perovskite/silicon tandem solar cell with a steady-state efficiency of 30.65% (reportedly assessed by a third party). 

Schematic of the monolithic tandem structure based on a double-side textured silicon heterojunction cell. Image credit: Nature Communications

The tandem devices also retained 96% of their initial efficiency after 527 h of operation under full spectral continuous illumination, and 98% after 1000 h of damp-heat testing (85 °C with 85% relative humidity).

Researchers from North China Electric Power University, Beijing University of Chemical Technology and Sichuan Normal University have created bright blue perovskite LEDs (PeLEDs), among the LED colors needed to enable commercial applications.

With high efficiency and stability, PeLEDs could be a promising new option for full-color displays and solid-state lighting technology. However, while red and green PeLEDs have nearly reached their theoretical external quantum efficiencies, blue PeLEDs do not yet reach the efficiency, stability, or luminosity required for commercial applications. The novel method presented in this work seeks to address this challenge. Using an in situ spin-coating method, the authors created Dion-Jacobson phase quasi-2D perovskite nanocrystals. A mixture of mixed inorganic cesium bromide and two organic bidentate molecules in the perovskite precursor solution regulates growth and crosslinking in the nanocrystals. The resulting perovskites demonstrated effective emission in PeLEDs, brightly glowing from sky blue to deep blue.

Metal halide perovskite light-emitting diodes (PeLEDs) that emit deep-blue color with high efficiency have not yet been fully achieved and become more difficult in the thin film of confined perovskite colloidal quantum dots (PeQDs) due to particle interaction. Recently, researchers from Seoul National University and University of Toronto demonstrated that electronic coupling and energy transfer in PeQDs induce redshift in the emission by PeQD film, and consequently hinder deep-blue emission.

Scheme illustrating QD-QD interaction related to emission spectrum shifts in the A) QD-only film and B) QD-mCP solid solution. Image credit: Advanced Materials

To achieve deep-blue emission by avoiding electronic coupling and energy transfer, a QD-in-organic solid solution was introduced, to physically separate the QDs in the film. This physical separation of QDs reduces the interaction between them yielding a blueshift of ≈7 nm in the emission spectrum. 

Researchers from China's Jinan University, University of Macau, Wuyi University, Guangdong Mellow Energy and Germany's IEK-5 Photovoltaik (Forschungszentrum Jülich) recently designed a two-terminal perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell that utilizes new hybrid interconnecting layers to reduce recombination losses in the top perovskite device. The tandem cell achieved an impressive fill factor of 81.8%, which the scientists said is the highest value ever reported for this cell technology to date.

The team's 2T perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell is based on special hybrid interconnecting layers (ICLs) that prevent direct contact between the perovskite absorber and transparent conductive oxide (TCO). The scientists' approach is based on sputtered nickel oxide (NiOx) as the seed layer of SAMs to build the hybrid interconnecting layers. The sputtered treatment technique provides, according to the team, an easy coating on a complex substrate and high reproducibility.