Issue 8, 2021

Graphene assisted crystallization and charge extraction for efficient and stable perovskite solar cells free of a hole-transport layer

Abstract

In recent times, perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have been of wide interest in solar energy research, which has ushered in a new era for photovoltaic power sources through the incredible enhancement in their power conversion efficiency (PCE). However, several serious challenges still face their high efficiency: upscaling and commercialization of the fabricated devices, including long-term stability as well as the humid environment conditions of the functional cells. To overcome these obstacles, stable graphene (G) materials with tunable electronic features have been used to assist the crystallization as well as the charge extraction inside the device configuration. Nonetheless, the hole transport layer (HTL)-free PSCs based on graphene materials exhibit unpredictable results, including a high efficiency and long-term stability even in the conditions of an ambient air atmosphere. Herein, we combine graphene materials into a mesoporous TiO2 electron transfer layer (ETL) to improve the coverage and crystallinity of the perovskite material and minimize charge recombination to augment both the stability and efficiency of the fabricated mixed cation PSCs in ambient air, even in the absence of a HTL. Our results demonstrate that an optimized PSC in the presence of different percentages of graphene materials displays a PCE of up to 17% in the case of a G:TiO2 ETL doped with 1.5% graphene. With this coverage and crystallinity amendment approach, we show hysteresis-free and stable PSCs, with less decomposition after ∼3000 h of storage under a moist ambient atmosphere. This work focuses on the originalities of the materials, expenses, and the assembling of stable and effective perovskite solar cells.

Graphical abstract: Graphene assisted crystallization and charge extraction for efficient and stable perovskite solar cells free of a hole-transport layer

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
29 okt 2020
Accepted
03 yan 2021
First published
22 yan 2021
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY license

RSC Adv., 2021,11, 4417-4424

Graphene assisted crystallization and charge extraction for efficient and stable perovskite solar cells free of a hole-transport layer

A. E. Shalan, M. K. A. Mohammed and N. Govindan, RSC Adv., 2021, 11, 4417 DOI: 10.1039/D0RA09225H

This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported Licence. You can use material from this article in other publications without requesting further permissions from the RSC, provided that the correct acknowledgement is given.

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