Back-contact perovskite solar cells target greater efficiency
The Engineer: Solar cells could become more efficient and cheaper to mass produce as a result of an EPSRC-funded research project at St Andrew’s University.
The project, led by research fellow Dr Jonathon Harwell of the university’s physics and astronomy department, aims to develop a back-contact perovskite cell, improving efficiency and making the cells easier to mass produce.
Important Breakthrough in Perovskite Solar Cells
SciTechDaily-5 Nov 2019: Rice University scientists believe they've overcome a major hurdle keeping perovskite-based solar cells from achieving mainstream use.
Through the strategic use of the element indium to replace some of the lead in perovskites, Rice materials scientist Jun Lou and his colleagues at the Brown School of Engineering say they're better able to engineer the defects in cesium-lead-iodide solar cells that affect the compound's band gap, a critical property in solar cell efficiency.
As a side benefit, the lab's newly formulated cells can be made in open air and last for months rather than days with a solar conversion efficiency slightly above 12%.
Through the strategic use of the element indium to replace some of the lead in perovskites, Rice materials scientist Jun Lou and his colleagues at the Brown School of Engineering say they're better able to engineer the defects in cesium-lead-iodide solar cells that affect the compound's band gap, a critical property in solar cell efficiency.
As a side benefit, the lab's newly formulated cells can be made in open air and last for months rather than days with a solar conversion efficiency slightly above 12%.
EurekAlert (press release)-5 Nov 2019
MIT scientists develop a coating for perovskites
pv magazine International: Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed a transparent coating they successfully incorporated into a perovskite solar cell, increasing efficiency and stability. The group says with further improvements the material could be used as a simpler, less expensive alternative to widely used indium titanium oxide as a transparent conductive material for a range of applications.
Perovskite solar cells have new potential
The Engineer: A new type of material for next-generation solar cells eliminates the need to use lead, which has been a major roadblock for this technology.
Solar cells, incorporating the mineral perovskite, have been the focus of attention since the material was first shown to work in 2009. Solar cells that are built using this material are more efficient than current solar panels. Current solar panels capture 15% to 18% of the solar energy on average, while perovskite solar cells have been found to be as much as 28% efficient.
SciTechDaily-13 Nov 2019
