Perovskite solar cells, which use perovskite-structured materials, have gained attention for their cost-effectiveness and ease of production compared to traditional silicon solar cells. However, despite rapid advancements, the path to commercialization has been slowed by challenges related to stability, particularly the weak adhesion between different layers of the cells, which affects their reliability.
Addressing this challenge, Prof. ZHOU Yuanyuan, Associate Professor in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering (CBE) at HKUST, and her team drew inspiration from the mechanical strength of natural chiral materials. They created an innovative chiral-structured interface in PSCs that greatly improves the mechanical durability and reliability of the cells.
The team incorporated chiral-structured interlayers, specifically R-/S-methylbenzyl-ammonium, between the perovskite absorber and the electron transport layer. This resulted in a robust and elastic heterointerface. The enhanced solar cells retained 92% of their initial power conversion efficiency after undergoing 200 cycles between -40 C and 85 C over 1,200 hours, according to International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) 61215 standards.
"The intriguing mechanical properties of chiral materials are associated with the helical packing of their subunits, which resembles a mechanical spring," explained Dr. DUAN Tianwei, the first author of this study and a Research Assistant Professor in the CBE Department at HKUST. "Incorporating a chiral-structured interlayer at the crucial device interface makes the perovskite solar cell more mechanically durable and adaptable under various operational states," she added.
Prof. Zhou highlighted the importance of this advancement, stating, "It is really the dawn for the commercialization of perovskite solar cells. Given the high efficiencies of these cells, if we could ultimately overcome the reliability issue, billions of energy markets will be seen."
This innovation could revolutionize the solar energy sector by making perovskite solar cells more reliable and efficient, enabling continuous electricity generation in diverse environmental conditions.
Research Report:Chiral-structured heterointerfaces enable durable perovskite solar cells
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