Manufacture of High-Efficiency and Stable Lead-Free Solar Cells through Antisolvent Quenching Engineering

Abstract

Antisolvent quenching has shown to significantly enhance several perovskite films used in solar cells; however, no studies have been conducted on its impact on MASnI3. Here, we investigated the role that different antisolvents, i.e., diethyl ether, toluene, and chlorobenzene, have on the growth of MASnI3 films. The crystallinity, morphology, topography, and optical properties of the obtained thin films were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), photoluminescence (PL) measurements, and UV–visible spectroscopy. The impact of the different antisolvent treatments was evaluated based on the surface homogeneity as well as the structure of the MASnI3 thin films. In addition, thermal annealing was optimized to control the crystallization process. The applied antisolvent was modified to better manage the supersaturation process. The obtained results support the use of chlorobenzene and toluene to reduce pinholes and increase the grain size. Toluene was found to further improve the morphology and stability of thin films, as it showed less degradation after four weeks under dark with 60% humidity. Furthermore, we performed a simulation using SCAPS-1D software to observe the effect of these antisolvents on the performance of MASnI3-based solar cells. We also produced the device FTO/TiO2/MASnI3/Spiro-OMeTAD/Au, obtaining a remarkable photoconversion efficiency (PCE) improvement of 5.11% when using the MASnI3 device treated with chlorobenzene. A PCE improvement of 9.44% was obtained for the MASnI3 device treated with toluene, which also showed better stability. Our results support antisolvent quenching as a reproducible method to improve perovskite devices under ambient conditions.

Exploring Cu-Doping for Performance Improvement in Sb2Se3 Photovoltaic Solar Cells

“…The search for reliable alternatives to the currently leading absorber materials for thin-film photovoltaic solar cells is very active. In order to replace silicon (a-Si), cadmium telluride (CdTe), and copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS), researchers are exploring materials that are cheaper, contain low-toxic and earth-abundant elements and have a high conversion efficiency [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ].…”

Dimethylammonium Cation-Induced 1D/3D Heterostructure for Efficient and Stable Perovskite Solar Cells

“…The integrated J sc calculated from EQE spectra reached 22.55 mA∙cm −2 and 22.64 mA∙cm −2 for control and modified devices, respectively. To study the reproducibility of our devices, we followed the method mentioned in the previous report [ 62 ]; the statistical distribution of the PV parameters from 15 individual devices with different concentrations of DMAI are summarized in Figure S8 , revealing that the introduction of 1D perovskite in PSCs improves reproducibility, and the increment of PCE is owed primarily to the enhanced V oc and FF.…”

Investigation of the Surface Coating, Humidity Degradation, and Recovery of Perovskite Film Phase for Solar-Cell Applications

“…SACPS-1D, over years, has proven to be a significant tool for understanding the physics of solar cells and it has been comprehensively used for perovskite solar cells [ 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 ]. SCAPS also calculates AC quantities, electron/hole densities, quantum efficiencies (QE%)/spectral response, total recombination currents, energy band diagrams, and current density vs. voltage characteristics [ 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 ] It is based on drift-diffusion differential equations and Poisson’s carrier (electron/hole transport) continuity equations [ 63 , 64 ].…”