Enhancing the efficiency of solar cells to achieve independence from fossil fuel energy sources is a primary focus in solar cell research. A team led by physicist Dr. Felix Lang from the University of Potsdam, alongside Prof. Lei Meng and Prof. Yongfang Li from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, has successfully integrated perovskite with organic absorbers to develop a tandem solar cell that achieves record efficiency levels, as reported in the scientific journal Nature.
This approach involves the combination of two materials that selectively absorb short and long wavelengths—specifically, the blue/green and red/infrared regions of the spectrum—thereby optimizing sunlight utilization. Traditionally, the most effective red/infrared absorbing components in solar cells have come from conventional materials like silicon or CIGS (copper indium gallium selenide). However, these materials typically require high processing temperatures, resulting in a significant carbon footprint.
In their recent publication in Nature, Lang and his colleagues merge two promising solar cell technologies: perovskite and organic solar cells, which can be processed at lower temperatures and have a reduced carbon impact. Achieving an impressive efficiency of 25.7% with this new combination was a challenging task, as noted by Felix Lang, who explained, “This breakthrough was only made possible by combining two significant advancements.” The first breakthrough was the synthesis of a new red/infrared absorbing organic solar cell by Meng and Li, which extends its absorption capability further into the infrared range. Lang further elaborated, “However, tandem solar cells faced limitations due to the perovskite layer, which suffers substantial efficiency losses when designed to absorb primarily the blue and green segments of the solar spectrum. To overcome this, we implemented a novel passivation layer on the perovskite, which mitigates material defects and enhances the overall performance of the cell.”
Post time: Dec-12-2024