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Title: Semitransparent Sb2S3 thin film solar cells by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis for use in solar windows

Journal Article · · Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology
ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1];  [2];  [3];  [4];  [3]; ORCiD logo [4];  [1];  [1]
  1. Tallinn Univ. of Technology, Ehitajate (Estonia)
  2. Tallinn Univ. of Technology, Ehitajate (Estonia); Univ. of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV (United States)
  3. Univ. of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV (United States); Karlsruhe Inst. of Technology (KIT), Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen (Germany)
  4. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Advanced Light Source (ALS)

The integration of photovoltaic (PV) solar energy in zero-energy buildings requires durable and efficient solar windows composed of lightweight and semitransparent thin film solar cells. Inorganic materials with a high optical absorption coefficient, such as Sb2S3(>105cm-1 at 450 nm), offer semitransparency, appreciable efficiency, and long-term durability at low cost. Oxide-free throughout the Sb2S3 layer thickness, as confirmed by combined studies of energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and synchrotron soft X-ray emission spectroscopy, semitransparent Sb2S3 thin films can be rapidly grown in air by the area-scalable ultrasonic spray pyrolysis method. Integrated into a ITO/TiO 2/Sb2S3/P3HT/Au solar cell, a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 5.5% at air mass 1.5 global (AM1.5G) is achieved, which is a record among spray-deposited Sb2S3 solar cells. An average visible transparency (AVT) of 26% of the back-contact-less ITO/TiO2/Sb2S3solar cell stack in the wavelength range of 380–740 nm is attained by tuning the Sb2S3 absorber thickness to 100 nm. In scale-up from mm2to cm2areas, the Sb2S3hybrid solar cells show a decrease in efficiency of only 3.2% for an 88 mm2Sb2S3 solar cell, which retains 70% relative efficiency after one year of non-encapsulated storage. A cell with a PCE of 3.9% at 1 sun shows a PCE of 7.4% at 0.1 sun, attesting to the applicability of these solar cells for light harvesting under cloud cover.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES) (SC-22)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231
OSTI ID:
1591802
Journal Information:
Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology, Journal Name: Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology Vol. 10; ISSN BJNEAH; ISSN 2190-4286
Publisher:
Beilstein InstituteCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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