In a bid to harness higher amount of solar energy, solar cells have been an interest area of researchers to increase their efficiency. In one such effort, a team of researchers at Florida State University are vying to understand the fundamental nature of a material known as perovskite. The study of perovskite could lead to more efficient solar cells, and improved efficiency of the material to resist degradation.
In fact, small tweaks in the chemical makeup of materials and the magnitude of the electrical field it is subject to can greatly affect the overall stability of material, found researchers during the study.
The finding of the research is published in a pair of studies in the Journal of Applied Physics and Journal of Materials Chemistry C.
Efficiency of Perovskite solar cells leaps between first and latest version
Therefore, the focus of research is on improving the potential of perovskites – a material with crystal structure based on positively charged ions based on negatively charged halide anions and positively charged lead cations. In terms of structure of a cubic perovskite crystal, the octahedra formed by halide and lead ions are enveloped by additional positively charged cations.
When comparing efficiency of the first perovskite solar cells developed in 2006, with the one developed in 2020 the efficiency increased substantially. The former had an efficiency of about three percent versus more than twenty five percent of the latter of converting solar energy power. The rapid increase in efficiency, thus makes perovskite a promising material for further research. On the downside, however, perovskites have drawbacks such as tendency to degrade quickly, thereby reducing their commercial viability.
“How can perovskites made to be more stable under real-world conditions in which they’ll be used?” said one of the researchers.
