skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Enhancing electron diffusion length in narrow-bandgap perovskites for efficient monolithic perovskite tandem solar cells

Abstract

Developing multijunction perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is an attractive route to boost PSC efficiencies to above the single-junction Shockley-Queisser limit. However, commonly used tin-based narrow-bandgap perovskites have shorter carrier diffusion lengths and lower absorption coefficient than lead-based perovskites, limiting the efficiency of perovskite-perovskite tandem solar cells. In this work, we discover that the charge collection efficiency in tin-based PSCs is limited by a short diffusion length of electrons. Adding 0.03 molar percent of cadmium ions into tin-perovskite precursors reduce the background free hole concentration and electron trap density, yielding a long electron diffusion length of 2.72 ± 0.15 um. It increases the optimized thickness of narrow-bandgap perovskite films to 1000 nm, yielding exceptional stabilized efficiencies of 20.2 and 22.7% for single junction narrow-bandgap PSCs and monolithic perovskite-perovskite tandem cells, respectively. This work provides a promising method to enhance the optoelectronic properties of narrow-bandgap perovskites and unleash the potential of perovskite-perovskite tandem solar cells.

Authors:
ORCiD logo [1];  [1]; ORCiD logo [1]; ORCiD logo [1];  [1];  [1];  [1]; ORCiD logo [2]; ORCiD logo [2];  [2];  [1];  [1]; ORCiD logo [2];  [2]; ORCiD logo [1]
  1. Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC (United States)
  2. National Renewable Energy Lab. (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Energy Frontier Research Centers (EFRC) (United States). Center for Hybrid Organic-Inorganic Semiconductors for Energy (CHOISE); National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES); U.S. Department of Defense (DOD), Office of Naval Research; USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Renewable Power Office. Solar Energy Technologies Office
OSTI Identifier:
1570187
Report Number(s):
NREL/JA-5900-73936
Journal ID: ISSN 2041-1723
Grant/Contract Number:  
AC36-08GO28308
Resource Type:
Journal Article: Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
Nature Communications
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 10; Journal Issue: 1; Journal ID: ISSN 2041-1723
Publisher:
Nature Publishing Group
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
14 SOLAR ENERGY; 36 MATERIALS SCIENCE; tandem cell; perovskite; carrier dynamics

Citation Formats

Yang, Zhibin, Yu, Zhenhua, Wei, Haotong, Xiao, Xun, Ni, Zhenyi, Chen, Bo, Deng, Yehao, Habisreutinger, Severin N., Chen, Xihan, Wang, Kang, Zhao, Jingjing, Rudd, Peter N., Berry, Joseph J., Beard, Matthew C., and Huang, Jinsong. Enhancing electron diffusion length in narrow-bandgap perovskites for efficient monolithic perovskite tandem solar cells. United States: N. p., 2019. Web. doi:10.1038/s41467-019-12513-x.
Yang, Zhibin, Yu, Zhenhua, Wei, Haotong, Xiao, Xun, Ni, Zhenyi, Chen, Bo, Deng, Yehao, Habisreutinger, Severin N., Chen, Xihan, Wang, Kang, Zhao, Jingjing, Rudd, Peter N., Berry, Joseph J., Beard, Matthew C., & Huang, Jinsong. Enhancing electron diffusion length in narrow-bandgap perovskites for efficient monolithic perovskite tandem solar cells. United States. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-12513-x
Yang, Zhibin, Yu, Zhenhua, Wei, Haotong, Xiao, Xun, Ni, Zhenyi, Chen, Bo, Deng, Yehao, Habisreutinger, Severin N., Chen, Xihan, Wang, Kang, Zhao, Jingjing, Rudd, Peter N., Berry, Joseph J., Beard, Matthew C., and Huang, Jinsong. 2019. "Enhancing electron diffusion length in narrow-bandgap perovskites for efficient monolithic perovskite tandem solar cells". United States. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-12513-x. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1570187.
@article{osti_1570187,
title = {Enhancing electron diffusion length in narrow-bandgap perovskites for efficient monolithic perovskite tandem solar cells},
author = {Yang, Zhibin and Yu, Zhenhua and Wei, Haotong and Xiao, Xun and Ni, Zhenyi and Chen, Bo and Deng, Yehao and Habisreutinger, Severin N. and Chen, Xihan and Wang, Kang and Zhao, Jingjing and Rudd, Peter N. and Berry, Joseph J. and Beard, Matthew C. and Huang, Jinsong},
abstractNote = {Developing multijunction perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is an attractive route to boost PSC efficiencies to above the single-junction Shockley-Queisser limit. However, commonly used tin-based narrow-bandgap perovskites have shorter carrier diffusion lengths and lower absorption coefficient than lead-based perovskites, limiting the efficiency of perovskite-perovskite tandem solar cells. In this work, we discover that the charge collection efficiency in tin-based PSCs is limited by a short diffusion length of electrons. Adding 0.03 molar percent of cadmium ions into tin-perovskite precursors reduce the background free hole concentration and electron trap density, yielding a long electron diffusion length of 2.72 ± 0.15 um. It increases the optimized thickness of narrow-bandgap perovskite films to 1000 nm, yielding exceptional stabilized efficiencies of 20.2 and 22.7% for single junction narrow-bandgap PSCs and monolithic perovskite-perovskite tandem cells, respectively. This work provides a promising method to enhance the optoelectronic properties of narrow-bandgap perovskites and unleash the potential of perovskite-perovskite tandem solar cells.},
doi = {10.1038/s41467-019-12513-x},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/1570187}, journal = {Nature Communications},
issn = {2041-1723},
number = 1,
volume = 10,
place = {United States},
year = {Thu Oct 03 00:00:00 EDT 2019},
month = {Thu Oct 03 00:00:00 EDT 2019}
}

Journal Article:
Free Publicly Available Full Text
Publisher's Version of Record

Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 152 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

Figures / Tables:

Fig. 1 Fig. 1: Simulation of the NBG and monolithic perovskite tandem solar cells. a Simulated JSC of perovskite–perovskite tandem solar cells with assumption of 90% EQE in the whole absorption spectrum. In the simulation, the NBG FA0.5MA0.45Cs0.05Pb0.5Sn0.5I3 and WBG FA0.6Cs0.4Pb(I0.65Br0.35)3 perovskites have bandgaps of 1.22 eV and 1.80 eV, respectively. bmore » Absorption coefficient of FA0.5MA0.45Cs0.05Pb0.5Sn0.5I3 with a bandgap of 1.22 eV, and corresponded thickness of the films that is needed to absorb 90% of different incident light. Source data are provided as a Source Data file« less

Save / Share:

Works referenced in this record:

Highly Efficient Perovskite-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells Reaching 80% of the Theoretical Limit in Photovoltage
journal, July 2017


Chemical Management for Colorful, Efficient, and Stable Inorganic–Organic Hybrid Nanostructured Solar Cells
journal, March 2013


A theoretical and experimental study of recombination in silicon p−n junctions
journal, June 1975


Stable Low-Bandgap Pb-Sn Binary Perovskites for Tandem Solar Cells
journal, August 2016


Lead-Free Halide Perovskite Solar Cells with High Photocurrents Realized Through Vacancy Modulation
journal, September 2014


Planar‐Structure Perovskite Solar Cells with Efficiency beyond 21%
journal, October 2017


23.6%-efficient monolithic perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells with improved stability
journal, February 2017


Four-Terminal All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells Achieving Power Conversion Efficiencies Exceeding 23%
journal, January 2018


Organometal Halide Perovskites as Visible-Light Sensitizers for Photovoltaic Cells
journal, May 2009


Defect Passivation via a Graded Fullerene Heterojunction in Low-Bandgap Pb–Sn Binary Perovskite Photovoltaics
journal, October 2017


Carrier Diffusion Lengths of over 500 nm in Lead-Free Perovskite CH 3 NH 3 SnI 3 Films
journal, October 2016


A fluorene-terminated hole-transporting material for highly efficient and stable perovskite solar cells
journal, July 2018


Formamidinium lead trihalide: a broadly tunable perovskite for efficient planar heterojunction solar cells
journal, January 2014


Efficient Hybrid Solar Cells Based on Meso-Superstructured Organometal Halide Perovskites
journal, October 2012


Fully textured monolithic perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells with 25.2% power conversion efficiency
journal, June 2018


Carrier lifetimes of >1 μs in Sn-Pb perovskites enable efficient all-perovskite tandem solar cells
journal, April 2019


Efficient Monolithic Perovskite/Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells
journal, December 2016


Efficient and stable solution-processed planar perovskite solar cells via contact passivation
journal, February 2017


Incorporation of rubidium cations into perovskite solar cells improves photovoltaic performance
journal, September 2016


Ideal Bandgap Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Perovskite Solar Cells
journal, November 2017


Detailed Balance Limit of Efficiency of p‐n Junction Solar Cells
journal, March 1961


Perovskite-kesterite monolithic tandem solar cells with high open-circuit voltage
journal, October 2014


Lead-free solid-state organic–inorganic halide perovskite solar cells
journal, May 2014


Perovskite-perovskite tandem photovoltaics with optimized band gaps
journal, October 2016


High-performance perovskite/Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 monolithic tandem solar cells
journal, August 2018


Perovskite/polymer monolithic hybrid tandem solar cells utilizing a low-temperature, full solution process
journal, January 2015


High-efficiency inverted semi-transparent planar perovskite solar cells in substrate configuration
journal, December 2016


Lead-free organic–inorganic tin halide perovskites for photovoltaic applications
journal, January 2014


Perovskite-perovskite tandem photovoltaics with optimized bandgaps
text, January 2016


Lead-Free Halide Perovskite Solar Cells with High Photocurrents Realized Through Vacancy Modulation
journal, September 2014


Stable Low-Bandgap Pb-Sn Binary Perovskites for Tandem Solar Cells
journal, August 2016


Highly Efficient Perovskite-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells Reaching 80% of the Theoretical Limit in Photovoltage
journal, July 2017


Planar‐Structure Perovskite Solar Cells with Efficiency beyond 21%
journal, October 2017


Ideal Bandgap Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Perovskite Solar Cells
journal, November 2017


Efficient Monolithic Perovskite/Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells
journal, December 2016


A theoretical and experimental study of recombination in silicon p−n junctions
journal, June 1975


Defect Passivation via a Graded Fullerene Heterojunction in Low-Bandgap Pb–Sn Binary Perovskite Photovoltaics
journal, October 2017


Four-Terminal All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells Achieving Power Conversion Efficiencies Exceeding 23%
journal, January 2018


Organometal Halide Perovskites as Visible-Light Sensitizers for Photovoltaic Cells
journal, May 2009


Carrier Diffusion Lengths of over 500 nm in Lead-Free Perovskite CH 3 NH 3 SnI 3 Films
journal, October 2016


Chemical Management for Colorful, Efficient, and Stable Inorganic–Organic Hybrid Nanostructured Solar Cells
journal, March 2013


High-efficiency inverted semi-transparent planar perovskite solar cells in substrate configuration
journal, December 2016


23.6%-efficient monolithic perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells with improved stability
journal, February 2017


Lead-free solid-state organic–inorganic halide perovskite solar cells
journal, May 2014


A fluorene-terminated hole-transporting material for highly efficient and stable perovskite solar cells
journal, July 2018


Fully textured monolithic perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells with 25.2% power conversion efficiency
journal, June 2018


Formamidinium lead trihalide: a broadly tunable perovskite for efficient planar heterojunction solar cells
journal, January 2014


Tin–lead halide perovskites with improved thermal and air stability for efficient all-perovskite tandem solar cells
journal, January 2018


Detailed Balance Limit of Efficiency of p‐n Junction Solar Cells
journal, March 1961


Incorporation of rubidium cations into perovskite solar cells improves photovoltaic performance
journal, September 2016


High-performance perovskite/Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 monolithic tandem solar cells
journal, August 2018


General transfer-matrix method for optical multilayer systems with coherent, partially coherent, and incoherent interference
journal, January 2002


Works referencing / citing this record:

Ultrathin microcrystalline hydrogenated Si/Ge alloyed tandem solar cells towards full solar spectrum conversion
journal, February 2020


Figures/Tables have been extracted from DOE-funded journal article accepted manuscripts.