Sub-1.4eV bandgap inorganic perovskite solar cells with long-term stability

Mingyu Hu; Min Chen; Peijun Guo; Hua Zhou; Junjing Deng; Yudong Yao; Yi Jiang; Jue Gong; Zhenghong Dai; Yunxuan Zhou; Feng Qian; Xiaoyu Chong; Jing Feng; Richard D Schaller; Kai Zhu; Nitin P Padture; Yuanyuan Zhou

doi:10.1038/s41467-019-13908-6

Sub-1.4eV bandgap inorganic perovskite solar cells with long-term stability

Nat Commun. 2020 Jan 9;11(1):151. doi: 10.1038/s41467-019-13908-6.

Authors

Mingyu Hu^{1

2}, Min Chen², Peijun Guo³, Hua Zhou⁴, Junjing Deng⁴, Yudong Yao⁴, Yi Jiang⁴, Jue Gong², Zhenghong Dai², Yunxuan Zhou¹, Feng Qian¹, Xiaoyu Chong¹, Jing Feng⁵, Richard D Schaller^{3

6}, Kai Zhu⁷, Nitin P Padture⁸, Yuanyuan Zhou⁹

Affiliations

¹ Faculty of Material Science and Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunan, 650093, China.
² School of Engineering, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, USA.
³ Center for Nanoscale Materials, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL, 60439, USA.
⁴ Advanced Photon Sources, Argonne National Laboratory, Lemont, IL, 60439, USA.
⁵ Faculty of Material Science and Engineering, Kunming University of Science and Technology, Kunming, Yunan, 650093, China. jingfeng@kmust.edu.cn.
⁶ Department of Chemistry, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA.
⁷ Chemical and Nanoscience Center, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Golden, CO, 80401, USA.
⁸ School of Engineering, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, USA. nitin_padture@brown.edu.
⁹ School of Engineering, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, USA. yuanyuan_zhou@brown.edu.

Abstract

State-of-the-art halide perovskite solar cells have bandgaps larger than 1.45 eV, which restricts their potential for realizing the Shockley-Queisser limit. Previous search for low-bandgap (1.2 to 1.4 eV) halide perovskites has resulted in several candidates, but all are hybrid organic-inorganic compositions, raising potential concern regarding device stability. Here we show the promise of an inorganic low-bandgap (1.38 eV) CsPb_0.6Sn_0.4I₃ perovskite stabilized via interface functionalization. Device efficiency up to 13.37% is demonstrated. The device shows high operational stability under one-sun-intensity illumination, with T₈₀ and T₇₀ lifetimes of 653 h and 1045 h, respectively (T₈₀ and T₇₀ represent efficiency decays to 80% and 70% of the initial value, respectively), and long-term shelf stability under nitrogen atmosphere. Controlled exposure of the device to ambient atmosphere during a long-term (1000 h) test does not degrade the efficiency. These findings point to a promising direction for achieving low-bandgap perovskite solar cells with high stability.