Perovskite solar cells with atomically coherent interlayers on SnO₂ electrodes

A probe team, led by Professor Sang Il Seok successful the School of Energy and Chemical Engineering astatine UNIST has acceptable a caller ratio grounds for a perovskite star compartment (PSC) astatine 25.8% by forming an interlayer betwixt electron-transporting and perovskite layers to minimize interfacial defects, contributing to the alteration successful the powerfulness conversion efficiencies. The caller record, according to the probe team, is the world's highest powerfulness conversion ratio (PCE) reported truthful far. Besides, the record, certified by National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), is besides the highest confirmed conversion ratio of 25.5%.

In perovskite star cells, the interfaces betwixt the perovskite and charge-transporting layers incorporate precocious concentrations of defects, specifically deep-level defects, which substantially trim the powerfulness conversion ratio of the devices, noted the probe team. Efforts person been made to trim these interfacial defects person focused chiefly connected aboveground passivation. Yet, passivating the perovskite aboveground that interfaces with the electron-transporting furniture has been difficult, due to the fact that the surface-treatment agents connected the electron-transporting furniture whitethorn dissolve portion coating the perovskite bladed film.

"Alternatively, interfacial defects whitethorn not beryllium a interest if a coherent interface could beryllium formed betwixt the electron-transporting and perovskite layers," said the probe team.

In this study, the probe squad reported the enactment of an interlayer betwixt a SnO₂ electron-transporting furniture and a halide perovskite light-absorbing layer, achieved by coupling Cl-bonded SnO₂ with a Cl-containing perovskite precursor.

This interlayer, according to the probe team, has atomically coherent features, which heighten complaint extraction and transport from the perovskite layer, and less interfacial defects. "The beingness of specified a coherent interlayer allowed america to fabricate perovskite star cells with a powerfulness conversion ratio of 25.8% nether modular illumination," the squad said, adding that unencapsulated devices maintained astir 90% of their archetypal ratio adjacent aft continuous airy vulnerability for 500 hours. They expect that specified findings supply guidelines for designing defect-minimizing interfaces betwixt metallic halide perovskites and electron-transporting layers.

The findings of this probe person been published successful the October 2021 contented of Nature.

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