Perovskite Solar Cells: Stable under Space Conditions

Abstract

Metal halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are of interest for high altitude and space applications due to their lightweight and versatile form factor. However, their resilience toward the particle spectrum encountered in space is still of concern. For space cells, the effect of these particles is condensed into an equivalent 1 MeV electron fluence. The effect of high doses of 1 MeV e‐beam radiation up to an accumulated fluence to 1016 e− cm−2 on methylammonium lead iodide perovskite thin films and solar cells is probed. By using substrate and encapsulation materials that are stable under the high energy e‐beam radiation, its net effect on the perovskite film and solar cells can be studied. The quartz substrate‐based PSCs are stable under the high doses of 1 MeV e‐beam irradiation. Time‐resolved microwave conductivity analysis on pristine and irradiated films indicates that there is a small reduction in the charge carrier diffusion length upon irradiation. Nevertheless, this diffusion length remains larger than the perovskite film thickness used in the solar cells, even for the highest accumulated fluence of 1016 e− cm−2. This demonstrates that PSCs are promising candidates for space applications.

Flexible Perovskite Solar Cells with High Power-Per-Weight: Progress, Application, and Perspectives

“…This flexibility in preparation and transport makes perovskite solar cells more attractive for space applications, as a disruptive technology. While before considering them for real space applications, it is crucial to understand how resilient they would be in the harsh unearthly environments (i.e., high-energy incident radiation, − extreme temperature cycling, plasma, vacuum or very low pressures).…”

“…and performance attenuation. To explore the net effect of high-energy electron beam irradiation on perovskite film, Daniel et al 157 studied the performance stability of quartz substrate-based PSCs exposed to irradiation by 1 MeV electrons with an accumulated fluence of 10 16 e•cm −2 , which is a standard used to test solar cells for space applications. The results showed virtually no performance degradation for the flexible device after e-beam radiation, in spite of slight reduction in the charge carrier diffusion length.…”

Advances in Perovskites for Photovoltaic Applications in Space

“…A similar study was presented by Pérez-del-Rey et al ., 86 who investigated the radiation tolerance of MAPbI 3 -based PSCs (p-i-n architecture) to EB with 1 MeV energy at accumulated doses up to 10 16 particles cm –2 . The authors used both glass and quartz as substrate (because the former leads to performance losses due to radiation-induced darkening), and Figure 7 a shows representative J – V curves obtained using the latter revealing a stable PCE ≈ 18.3%, up to 10 16 particles cm –2 .…”

Proton Radiation Hardness of Perovskite Solar Cells Utilizing a Mesoporous Carbon Electrode

“…Despite this, a few notable publications are investigating a wide range of energies, device architectures, perovskite compositions, and materials. [16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29] In 2015, and once again in 2018, Miyasaka et al showed that PSCs provide a much more robust radiation stable solar cell than their inorganic counterparts. In these publications, it was reported that PSCs utilizing a compact and mesoporous TiO 2 electron transport layer (ETL) and P3HT hole transport layer (HTL) are stable under an accumulated dose of 1 Â 10 14 protons cm À2 for 50 keV protons and 1 Â 10 16 electrons cm À2 for 1 MeV electrons.…”