Achieving Well-Oriented FAPbI3 Perovskite Photovoltaics by Cyclohexane Modification.

It is essential and challenging to develop green and cost-effective solar cells to meet the energy demands. Solar cells with a perovskite light-harvesting layer are the most promising technology to propel the world toward next-generation solar energy. Formamidinium lead tri-iodide (FAPbI3)-based perovskite solar cells (F-PSCs), with their considerable performance, offer cost-effective solar cells. One of the major issues that the PSC community is now experiencing is the stability of α-FAPbI3 at relatively low temperatures. In this study, we fabricated FAPbI3-PSCs using cyclohexane (CHX) material via a two-step deposition method. For this purpose, CHX is added to the formamidinium iodide:methylammonium chloride (FAI:MACl) solution as an additive and used to form a better FAPbI3 layer by controlling the reaction between FAI and lead iodide (PbI2). The CHX additive induces the reaction of undercoordinated Pb2+ with FAI material and produces an α-FAPbI3 layer with low charge traps and large domains. In addition, the CHX-containing FAPbI3 layers show higher carrier lifetimes and facilitate carrier transfer in F-PSCs. The CHX-modified F-PSCs yield a high champion efficiency of 22.84% with improved ambient and thermal stability behavior. This breakthrough provides valuable findings regarding the formation of a desirable FAPbI3 layer for photovoltaic applications and holds promise for the industrialization of F-PSCs.

Improved eco-friendly CsSn0.5Ge0.5I3 perovskite photovoltaic efficiency beyond 20% with SMe-TATPyr hole-transporting layer.

Perovskites composed of inorganic cesium (Cs) halide provide a route to thermally resistant solar cells. Nevertheless, the use of hole-transporting layers (HTLs) with hydrophobic additives is constrained by moisture-induced phase deterioration. Due to significant electrical loss, dopant-free HTLs are unable to produce practical solar cells. In this article, we designed a two-dimensional 1,3,6,8-tetrakis[5-(N,N-di(p-(methylthio)phenyl)amino-p-phenyl)-thiophen-2-yl]pyrene (termed SMe-TATPyr) molecule as a new HTL to regulate electrical loss in lead-free perovskite solar cells (PSCs). We optimized the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of PSCs based on mixed tin (Sn)/germanium (Ge) halide perovskite (CsSn0.5Ge0.5I3) by exploring different factors, such as the deep and shallow levels of defects, density of states at the valence band (NV), thickness of the perovskite film, p-type doping concentration (NA) of HTL, the series and shunt resistances, and so on. We carried out comparative research by employing the 1D-SCAPS (a solar cell capacitance simulator) analysis tool. Through optimization of the PSC, we obtained the highest parameters in the simulated solar cell structure of fluorine tin oxide (FTO)/titanium dioxide (TiO2)/CsSn0.5Ge0.5I3/SMe-TATPyr/gold (Au), and the PCE reached up to 20% with a fill factor (FF) of 81.89%.

Understanding Auger recombination in perovskite solar cells.

Enhanced radiative efficiency, long carrier lifetimes, and high carrier mobilities are hallmarks of perovskite solar cells. Considering this, complete cells experience large nonradiative recombination losses that restrict their VOC considerably below the Shockley-Queisser limit. Auger recombination, which involves two free photo-induced carriers and a trapped charge carrier, is one potential mechanism. Herein, the effects of Auger capture coefficients in mixed-cation perovskites are analyzed employing SCAPS-1D computations. It is demonstrated that VOC and FF are severely decreased with an increase in the acceptor concentration and Auger capture coefficients of perovskites, thus reducing the device performance. When the Auger capture coefficient is increased to 10-20 cm6 s-1 under the acceptor concentration of 1016 cm-3, the performance is drastically lowered from 21.5% (without taking Auger recombination into account) to 9.9%. The findings suggest that in order to increase the efficiency of perovskite solar cells and prevent the effects of Auger recombination, the Auger recombination coefficients should be less than 10-24 cm6 s-1.

Highly efficient emerging Ag2BaTiSe4 solar cells using a new class of alkaline earth metal-based chalcogenide buffers alternative to CdS.

Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 is a non-toxic, earth-abundant photovoltaic absorber. However, its efficiency is limited by a large open circuit voltage (VOC) deficit occurring due to its antisite defects and improper band alignment with toxic CdS buffer. Therefore, finding an absorber and non-toxic buffers that reduce VOC deficit is crucial. Herein, for the first time, Ag2BaTiSe4 is proposed as an alternative absorber using SCAPS-1D wherein a new class of alkaline earth metal chalcogenide such as MgS, CaS, SrS, and BaS is applied as buffers, and their characteristics are compared with CdS to identify their potential and suitability. The buffer and absorber properties are elucidated by tuning their thickness, carrier concentration, and defect density. Interestingly, optimization of the buffer's carrier concentration suppressed the barrier height and accumulation of charge carriers at the absorber/buffer interface, leading to efficiencies of 18.81%, 17.17%, 20.6%, 20.85%, 20.08% in MgS, CaS, SrS, BaS, and CdS-based solar cells respectively. Upon optimizing Ag2BaTiSe4, MoSe2, and interface defects maximum efficiency of > 28% is achieved with less VOC loss (~ 0.3 V) in all solar cells at absorber's thickness, carrier concentration, and defect density of 1 µm, 1018 cm-3, 1015 cm-3 respectively, underscoring the promising nature of Ag2BaTiSe4 absorber and new alkaline earth metal chalcogenide buffers in photovoltaics.

The impact of CBz-PAI interlayer in various HTL-based flexible perovskite solar cells: A drift-diffusion numerical study.

In perovskite solar cells (PSCs), the charge carrier recombination obstacles mainly occur at the ETL/perovskite and HTL/perovskite interfaces, which play a decisive role in the solar cell performance. Therefore, this study aims to enhance the flexible PSC (FPSC) efficiency by adding the newly designed CBz-PAI-interlayer (simply CBz-PAI-IL) at the perovskite/HTL interface. In addition, substantial work has been carried out on five different HTLs (Se/Te-Cu2O, CuGaO2, V2O5, and CuSCN, including conventional Spiro-OMeTAD as a reference HTL with and without CBz-PAI-IL), using drift-diffusion simulation to find suitable FPSC design to attain the maximum PCE. Interestingly, PET/ITO/AZO/ZnO NWs/FACsPbBrI3/CBz-PAI/Se/Te-Cu2O/Au device architecture demonstrates the highest achievable power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 27.9 %. The findings of this study confirmed that the reference device (without IL) displays a large valence band edge (VBE)/highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) energy level misalignment compared to the modified interface device (with CBz-PAI-IL that reduces VBE/HOMO level mismatch) that eases the hole transport, simultaneously, it reduces the charge carrier recombinations at the interface, resulting in diminished Voc losses in the device. Furthermore, the influence of perovskite absorber thickness and defect density, parasitic resistances, and working temperature are systematically examined to govern the superior FPSC efficiency and concurrently understand the device physics.

Enhancing perovskite solar cell performance through PbI2 in situ passivation using a one-step process: experimental insights and simulations.

The in situ passivation of a methylammonium lead triiodide (MAPbI3) phase spin-coated via a one-step process was experimentally investigated to elucidate their fundamental properties. Structural analysis revealed that MAPbI3 adopts a tetragonal crystal structure with a small excess of PbI2 (0.03 M) segregating at grain boundaries. Optical characterization indicated a band gap of 1.53 eV, highlighting the material's potential as an effective visible light absorber. To facilitate the fabrication of efficient perovskite solar cells (PSCs), we employed a primary n-i-p planar structure (ITO/SnO2/MAPbI3/spiro-OMeTAD/Au) in drift-diffusion SCAPS-1D simulations using experimental data from MAPbI3 layers containing excess PbI2. The simulations predicted a high power conversion efficiency (PCE) of approximately 24%. We further analyzed the impact of series resistance, shunt resistance, MAPbI3 thickness, defect density, as well as radiative and Auger recombination on photovoltaic performance, aiming to identify optimal parameters for enhanced device efficiency. Additionally, the use of ohmic contacts with AZO and IZO as the front and rear contacts, respectively, in the optimized device structure (AZO/SnO2/MAPbI3/spiro-OMeTAD/IZO) resulted in a PCE of 26.03%. These findings provide valuable insights for future research aimed at achieving high-efficiency bifacial MAPbI3 perovskite solar cells.

Tailoring graphene-oxide and reduced-graphene-oxide with NaNO3 and CaCl2 catalysts with enhanced photo-catalytic degradation of methylene blue dye.

This study employed various experimental techniques to produce graphene oxide (GO) under different conditions, such as the inclusion or exclusion of NaNO3, and reduced graphene oxide (RGO) with or without the catalyst CaCl2. The procedure of decreasing RGO was carried out using the reducing agent NaBH4. Moreover, the prepared mixtures were utilized in the degradation process of methylene blue (MB) dye using photo-catalysis, with exposure to both ultraviolet (UV) light and sunlight. When exposed to UV and sunlight irradiation, WN-GO showed rapid and ecologically friendly breakdown of MB dye in comparison to N-GO. WN-GO exhibited exceptional adsorption capabilities, surpassing other tested materials like N-GO, WN-C-RGO and C-RGO. Although WN-C-RGO has demonstrated satisfactory performance in terms of photo-catalytic degradation, as the concentration-time graph of the MB dye revealed significant degradation, with a reduction of up to 90% and 62.5% under UV light and sunlight exposure, respectively. These results offer insightful information on the potential of graphene-based materials to address other environmental issues, particularly in the areas of water treatment.

Enhancement of efficiency in CsSnI3 based perovskite solar cell by numerical modeling of graphene oxide as HTL and ZnMgO as ETL.

Perovskite photovoltaics have an immense contribution toward the all-round development of the solar cell. Apart from the flexibility, stability, and high efficiency, more stress has been given to using lead-free as well as eco-friendly, inexpensive materials in the fabrication of PSC devices. The utilization of non-volatile material, such as cesium tin iodide (CsSnI3), can be proposed for designing the PSC device, which not only makes it eco-friendly but also offers better optoelectronic characteristics due to its smaller bandgap of 1.27 eV. The inclusion of Sn in the perovskite material also functions as an increment in the stability of the perovskite. In the present simulation, CsSnI3 is used as an active absorber layer while the ZnMgO is used as an ETL for a cost-effective nature. Similarly, graphene oxide (GO) is used as HTL for a superior collection of holes. The comprehensive numerical modeling of the ZnMgO can be utilized in solar cell designing with appropriate CsSnI3 thickness, working temperature, total defectivity, and resistance impact, respectively. The presently simulated device offers an excellent efficiency of 17.37 % with CsSnI3-based PSC. These results of the study also show an effective route to develop highly efficient lead-free PSC devices.

Synergistic Blends of Sodium Alginate and Pectin Biopolymer Hosts as Conducting Electrolytes for Electrochemical Applications.

The world needs sustainable energy resources with affordable, economic, and accountable sources. Consequently, energy innovation technologies are evolving toward electrochemical applications like batteries, supercapacitors, etc. The current study involves the solid blend biopolymer electrolyte (SBBE) with different compositions of sodium alginate blended with pectin via the casting technique. The characterization of the sample was tested by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, AC impedance, linear sweep voltammetry (LSV), and cyclic voltammetry (CV) analyses. Evidently, the sample NP4 (NaAlg/pectin = 60:40 wt %) has a higher conductivity of 1.26 × 10-7 and 3.25 × 10-6 S cm-1 at 303 and 353 K, respectively. The performances of the samples were analyzed with variations in temperature, frequency, and time responses to signify the blended nature of the electrolyte. Hence, the studied biopolymers can be constructed for electrochemical device applications.

Effect of calcination temperature induced structural modifications on the photocatalytic efficacy of Fe2O3-ZrO2 nanostructures: mechanochemical synthesis.

Water contamination due to organic pollutants is a challenging issue around the globe, and several attempts have been made to deal with this issue. Out of which, the semiconductor-based photocatalytic process had gained much attention and proved to be an efficient, easy, and economical process for the removal of organic dyes from aqueous solutions. For this purpose, the iron oxide-zirconium dioxide nanocomposite (Fe2O3-ZrO2 NC) was prepared via a simple mechanochemical process using a mortar and pestle, followed by a calcination process at 300, 600, and 900 °C. Different physicochemical analyses were carried out in order to investigate the successful synthesis of Fe2O3-ZrO2 NC and the effect of temperature on the crystallinity, surface area, pore size, phase composition, sample morphology, and particle/crystallite size. The Fe2O3-ZrO2 NCs were subjected to a photocatalytic test under solar light irradiation against fluorescein dye in an aqueous medium, and the photocatalytic performance was examined under the influence of calcination temperatures, pH, catalyst dose, and initial concentration. The stability of the Fe2O3-ZrO2 NCs was also checked by recycling them for five reuse cycles.

Scrutinizing transport phenomena and recombination mechanisms in thin film Sb2S3 solar cells.

The Schockley-Quisser (SQ) limit of 28.64% is distant from the Sb2S3 solar cells' record power conversion efficiency (PCE), which is 8.00%. Such poor efficiency is mostly owing to substantial interface-induced recombination losses caused by defects at the interfaces and misaligned energy levels. The endeavor of this study is to investigate an efficient Sb2S3 solar cell structure via accurate analytical modeling. The proposed model considers different recombination mechanisms such as non-radiative recombination, Sb2S3/CdS interface recombination, Auger, SRH, tunneling-enhanced recombination, and their combined impact on solar cell performance. This model is verified against experimental work (Glass/ITO/CdS/Sb2S3/Au) where a good coincidence is achieved. Several parameters effects such as thickness, doping, electronic affinity, and bandgap are scrutinized. The effect of both bulk traps located in CdS and Sb2S3 on the electrical outputs of the solar cell is analyzed thoroughly. Besides, a deep insight into the effect of interfacial traps on solar cell figures of merits is gained through shedding light into their relation with carriers' minority lifetime, diffusion length, and surface recombination velocity. Our research findings illuminate that the primary contributors to Sb2S3 degradation are interfacial traps and series resistance. Furthermore, achieving optimal band alignment by fine-tuning the electron affinity of CdS to create a Spike-like conformation is crucial for enhancing the immunity of the device versus the interfacial traps. In our study, the optimized solar cell configuration (Glass/ITO/CdS/Sb2S3/Au) demonstrates remarkable performance, including a high short-circuit current (JSC) of 47.9 mA/cm2, an open-circuit voltage (VOC) of 1.16 V, a fill factor (FF) of 54%, and a notable improvement in conversion efficiency by approximately 30% compared to conventional solar cells. Beyond its superior performance, the optimized Sb2S3 solar cell also exhibits enhanced reliability in mitigating interfacial traps at the CdS/Sb2S3 junction. This improved reliability can be attributed to our precise control of band alignment and the fine-tuning of influencing parameters.

Impact of selenization with NaCl treatment on the physical properties and solar cell performance of crack-free Cu(In,Ga)Se2 microcrystal absorbers.

In this study, we developed an ink using hexanethiol and Cu(In,Ga)Se2 microcrystals (CIGSe MCs) to make thin films via doctor blade coating. Besides, crack-free thin films were obtained by optimizing CIGSe MC powder concentration and annealing temperature. Subsequently, single-step selenization was performed with and without sodium chloride (NaCl) surface treatment by carefully tuning the temperature. A crack-free surface with densely packed grains was obtained at 500 °C after NaCl treatment. Moreover, the structural parameters of the thin film (annealed at 350 °C) were significantly modified via selenization with NaCl at 500 °C. For instance, the FWHM of the prominent (112) plane reduced from 1.44° to 0.47°, the dislocation density minimized from 13.10 to 1.40 × 1015 lines per m2, and the microstrain decreased from 4.14 to 1.35 × 10-3. Remarkably, these thin films exhibited a high mobility of 26.7 cm2 V-1 s-1 and a low resistivity of 0.03 Ω cm. As a proof of concept, solar cells were engineered with a device structure of SLG/Mo/CIGSe/CdS/i-ZnO/Al-ZnO/Ag, wherein a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 5.74% was achieved with exceptional reproducibility. Consequently, the outcomes of this investigation revealed the impact of selenization temperature and NaCl treatment on the physical properties and PCE of hexanethiol-based crack-free CIGSe MC ink-coated absorbers, providing new insights into the groundwork of cost-effective solar cells.

Hydrothermal Synthesis, Phase Analysis, and Magneto-Electronic Characterizations of Lead-Free Ferroelectric BM2+(Zn, Ca, Mg)T-BFO System.

In this study, lead-free BiM2+(Zn, Ca, Mg)Ti-BiFeO3 ceramics are fabricated under eco-friendly hydrothermal reaction conditions at 250 °C. XRD patterns show that all the synthesized compounds exhibit a phase coexistence of monoclinic and tetragonal perovskite-type structures with a morphotropic phase boundary at x = 0.4, with minimum impurity. The calculated average crystallite/grain size of the samples was close to 50 nm at full width at half-maximum of the main peak. The corresponding bonds of the constituent elements were observed by FTIR analysis, which further supports the formation of the local structure. EDS analyses detect all of the elements, their quantities, and compositional homogeneity. SEM data show agglomerated and nearly spherical morphology with an average particle size of about 128 nm. All synthesized ceramic powders revealed thermal stability with trivial mass loss up to investigated high temperatures (1000 οC). The dielectric constant reached its maximum at 38.7 MHz and finally remained constant after 80 MHz for all nanoceramics. Because of the complementary impact of different compositions, the most effective piezoelectric characteristics of d33 = 136 pCN-1, Pr = 8.6 pCN-1 cm-2, and kp = 11% at 30 °C were attained at x = 0.4 content for 0.4BiCaTi-0.6BiFeO3 ceramic. The measured magnetic hysteresis data (M-H curve) showed a weak ferromagnetic nature with the highest moment of ∼0.23 emu/g for 0.4BiCaTi-0.6BiFeO3, and other samples exhibited negligible ferromagnetic to diamagnetic transition. The optical response study shows that the 0.4BiMgTi-0.6BiFeO3 sample yielded the maximal transmittance (50%), whereas the 0.4BiCaTi-0.6BiFeO3 compound exhibited the highest refractive index. The calculated large band gap shows a high insulating or dielectric nature. Our findings demonstrate that the BiM2+Ti-BiFeO3 system, which was fabricated using a low-temperature hydrothermal technique, is an excellent lead-free piezoelectric and multiferroic nanoceramic.

Optical performance analysis of InP nanostructures for photovoltaic applications.

In this article, we have performed a comparative analysis of six different types of nanostructures that can improve photon management for photovoltaic applications. These nanostructures act as anti-reflective structures by improving the absorption characteristics and tailoring the optoelectronic properties of the associated devices. The absorption enhancement in indium phosphide (InP) and silicon (Si) based cylindrical nanowires (CNWs) and rectangular nanowires (RNWs), truncated nanocones (TNCs), truncated nanopyramids (TNPs), inverted truncated nanocones (ITNCs), and inverted truncated nanopyramids (ITNPs) are computed using the finite element method (FEM) based commercial COMSOL Multiphysics package. The influence of geometrical dimensions of the investigated nanostructures such as period (P), diameter (D), width (W), filling ratio (FR), bottom W and D (W bot/D bot), and top W and D (W top/D top) on the optical performance are analyzed in detail. Optical short circuit current density (J sc) is computed using the absorption spectra. The results of numerical simulations indicate that InP nanostructures are optically superior to Si nanostructures. In addition to this, the InP TNP generates an optical short circuit current density (J sc) of 34.28 mA cm-2, which is ∼10 mA cm-2 higher than its Si counterpart. The effect of incident angle on the ultimate efficiency of the investigated nanostructures in transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) modes is also explored. Theoretical insights into the design strategies of different nanostructures proposed in this article will act as a benchmark for choosing the device dimensions of appropriate nanostructures for the fabrication of efficient photovoltaic devices.

Targeting high performance of perovskite solar cells by combining electronic, manufacturing and environmental features in machine learning techniques.

This study employs Machine Learning (ML) techniques to optimize the performance of Perovskite Solar Cells (PSCs) by identifying the ideal materials and properties for high Power Conversion Efficiency (PCE). Utilizing a dataset of 3000 PSC samples from previous experiments, the Random Forest (RF) technique classifies and predicts PCE as the target variable. The dataset includes various features encompassing cell architecture, substrate materials, electron transport layer (ETL) attributes, perovskite characteristics, hole transport layer (HTL) properties, back contact specifics, and encapsulation materials. ML-driven analysis reveals novel, highly efficient PSC configurations, such as Fe2O3/CsPbBrI2/NiO-mp/Carbon, CdS/FAMAPbI3/NiO-C/Au, and PCBM-60/Phen-NaDPO/MAPbI3/asy-PBTBDT/Ag. Additionally, the study investigates the impact of crucial parameters like perovskite bandgap, ETL thickness, thermal annealing temperature, and back contact thickness on device performance. The predictive model exhibits high accuracy (86.4 % R2) and low mean square error (1.3 MSE). Notably, the ML-recommended structure, SnO2/CsFAMAPbBrI/Spiro-OmeTAD/Au, achieves an impressive efficiency of around 23 %. Beyond performance improvements, the research explores the integration of ML into the manufacturing and quality control processes of PSCs. These findings hold promise for enhancing conversion yields, reducing defects, and ensuring consistent PSC performance, contributing to the advancement of this renewable energy technology.

Comparative study of distinct halide composites for highly efficient perovskite solar cells using a SCAPS-1D simulator.

This research investigates the influence of halide-based methylammonium-based perovskites as the active absorber layer (PAL) in perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Using SCAPS-1D simulation software, the study optimizes PSC performance by analyzing PAL thickness, temperature, and defect density impact on output parameters. PAL thickness analysis reveals that increasing thickness enhances JSC for MAPbI3 and MAPbI2Br, while that of MAPbBr3 remains steady. VOC remains constant, and FF and PCE vary with thickness. MAPbI2Br exhibits the highest efficiency of 22.05% at 1.2 µm thickness. Temperature impact analysis shows JSC, VOC, FF, and PCE decrease with rising temperature. MAPbI2Br-based PSC achieves the highest efficiency of 22.05% at 300 K. Contour plots demonstrate that optimal PAL thickness for the MAPbI2Br-based PSC is 1.2 µm with a defect density of 1 × 1013 cm-3, resulting in a PCE of approximately 22.05%. Impedance analysis shows the MAPbBr3-based PSC has the highest impedance, followed by Cl2Br-based and I-based perovskite materials. A comparison of QE and J-V characteristics indicates MAPbI2Br offers the best combination of VOC and JSC, resulting in superior efficiency. Overall, this study enhances PSC performance with MAPbI2Br-based devices, achieving an improved power conversion efficiency of 22.05%. These findings contribute to developing more efficient perovskite solar cells using distinct halide-based perovskite materials.

Performance Enhancement of an MoS2-Based Heterojunction Solar Cell with an In2Te3 Back Surface Field: A Numerical Simulation Approach.

Researchers are currently showing interest in molybdenum disulfide (MoS2)-based solar cells due to their remarkable semiconducting characteristics. The incompatibility of the band structures at the BSF/absorber and absorber/buffer interfaces, as well as carrier recombination at the rear and front metal contacts, prevents the expected result from being achieved. The main purpose of this work is to enhance the performance of the newly proposed Al/ITO/TiO2/MoS2/In2Te3/Ni solar cell and investigate the impacts of the In2Te3 BSF and TiO2 buffer layer on the performance parameters of open-circuit voltage (V OC), short-circuit current density (J SC), fill factor (FF), and power conversion efficiency (PCE). This research has been performed by utilizing SCAPS simulation software. The performance parameters such as variation of thickness, carrier concentration, the bulk defect concentration of each layer, interface defect, operating temperature, capacitance-voltage (C-V), surface recombination velocity, and front as well as rear electrodes have been analyzed to achieve a better performance. This device performs exceptionally well at lower carrier concentrations (1 × 1016 cm-3) in a thin (800 nm) MoS2 absorber layer. The PCE, V OC, J SC, and FF values of the Al/ITO/TiO2/MoS2/Ni reference cell have been estimated to be 22.30%, 0.793 V, 30.89 mA/cm2, and 80.62% respectively, while the PCE, V OC, J SC, and FF values have been determined to be 33.32%, 1.084 V, 37.22 mA/cm2, and 82.58% for the Al/ITO/TiO2/MoS2/In2Te3/Ni proposed solar cell by introducing In2Te3 between the absorber (MoS2) and the rear electrode (Ni). The proposed research may give an insight and a feasible way to realize a cost-effective MoS2-based thin-film solar cell.

High efficiency Cu2MnSnS4 thin film solar cells with SnS BSF and CdS ETL layers: A numerical simulation.

The quaternary compound copper manganese tin sulfide Cu2MnSnS4 is a potential absorber semiconductor material for fabricating thin film solar cells (TFSC) thanks to their promising optoelectronic parameters. This article numerically investigated the performance of Cu2MnSnS4 (CMTS)-based TFSC without and with tin sulphide (SnS) back surface field (BSF) thin-film layer. First, the impact of several major influential parameters such as the active material's thickness, doping concentration of photoactive materials, density of bulk and interface defect, working temperature, and metal contact, were studied systematically without a BSF layer. Thereafter, the photovoltaic performance of the optimized pristine cell was further investigated with an SnS as BSF inserted between the absorber (CMTS) with a Platinum back metal of an optimized heterostructure of Cu/ZnO:Al/i-ZnO/n-CdS/p-Cu2MnSnS4/Pt. Thus, the photoconversion efficiency (PCE) of 25.43% with a J SC of 34.41nullmA/cm2 and V OC of 0.883 V was achieved under AM1.5G solar spectrum without SnS BSF layer. Furthermore, an improved PCE of 31.4% with a J SC of 36.21nullmA/cm2 and V OC of 1.07 V was achieved with a quantum efficiency of over 85% in the wavelengths of 450-1000 nm by the addition of SnS BSF layer. Thus, this obtained systematic and consistent outcomes reveal immense potential of CMTS with SnS as absorber and BSF, respectively and provide imperious guidance for fabricating highly a massive potential efficient solar cell.

Inorganic novel cubic halide perovskite Sr3AsI3: Strain-activated electronic and optical properties.

In recent years, inorganic perovskite materials have attracted a lot of attention in the field of solar technology due to their exceptional structural, optical, and electronic properties. This study thoroughly investigated, using first-principles density-functional theory (FP-DFT), the impact of compressive and tensile strain on the structural, optical, and electrical properties of the inorganic cubic perovskite Sr3AsI3. The unstrained planar Sr3AsI3 molecule exhibits a direct bandgap of 1.265 eV value at Γ point. The bandgap of the Sr3AsI3 perovskite is lowered to 1.212 eV when the relativistic spin-orbital coupling (SOC) effect is subjected in the observations. In addition, the structure's bandgap exhibits a falling prevalence due to compressive strain and a slight rise due to tensile strain. The optical indicators such as dielectric functions, absorption coefficient, reflectivity, and electron loss function show that this component has a great ability to absorb in the visible range in accordance with band characteristics. When compressive strain is raised, it is discovered that the spikes of the dielectric constant of Sr3AsI3 move to lower photon energy (redshift), and conversely, while growing tensile strain, it exhibits increased photon energy changing behavior (blueshift). As a result, the Sr3AsI3 perovskite is regarded as being ideal for use in solar cells for the production of electricity and light management.

Designing an efficient lead-free perovskite solar cell with green-synthesized CuCrO2 and CeO2 as carrier transport materials.

With increased efficiency, simplicity in manufacturing, adaptability, and flexibility, solar cells constructed from organic metal halide perovskite (PVK) have recently attained great eminence. Lead, a poisonous substance, present in a conventional PVK impacts the environment and prevents commercialization. To deal with this issue, a number of toxicity-free PVK-constructed solar cells have been suggested. Nevertheless, inherent losses mean the efficiency conversion accomplished from these devices is inadequate. Therefore, a thorough theoretical investigation is indispensable for comprehending the losses to improve efficiency. The findings of a unique modelling method for organic lead-free solar cells, namely methylammonium tin iodide (MASnI3), are investigated to reach the maximum practical efficiencies. The layer pertinent to MASnI3 was constructed as a sandwich between a bio-synthesized electron transport layer (ETL) of CeO2 and a hole transport layer (HTL) of CuCrO2 in the designed perovskite solar cells (PSCs). In this study, the use of algae-synthesized Au in the back contacts has been proposed. To obtain the maximum performance, the devices are further analyzed and optimized for active layer thickness, working temperature, total and interface defect density analysis, impedance analysis (Z'-Z), and capacitance-voltage (C-V), respectively. An optimal conversion efficiency of 26.60% has been attained for an MASnI3-constructed PSC. The study findings may open the door to a lead-free PSC through improved conversion efficiencies.