Meso-superstructured perovskite solar cells: Revealing the role of the mesoporous layer

Journal article

While perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have been developed with different device architectures, mesoporous devices have provided the highest power conversion efficiencies. In this work, the working mechanism of both positive-intrinsic-negative (p-i-n) and negative-intrinsic-positive (n-i-p) meso-superstructured (MSSC) PSCs, which include a thin interlayer of porous alumina at the bottom electrode, is explored. Interestingly, for both p-i-n and n-i-p architecture, the mesoporous configuration was more efficient than its planar counterpart. For MSSC SnO2-based n-i-p devices, that result was primarily due to an increase in Voc and Jsc, resulting from improved band alignment and filling of the electron trap states (n-doping at the SnO2/perovskite interface), which led to devices with 21.0% efficiency and 20.3% stabilized power output (SPO). Although MSSC NiOx-based p-i-n meso-superstructured devices were less efficient due to lower Voc, a slightly higher Jsc and fill factor improvement was achieved by the Al2O3 mesoporous layer, resulting in devices with 16.9% efficiency. Importantly, the electronic nature of the perovskite is dependent upon its physical confinement within a mesoporous scaffold. Therefore, either p- or n-type semiconductor/perovskite interfaces can be engineered by selectively modifying the semiconductor behavior with the introduction of an insulating mesoporous scaffold interlayer.

Authors: Ramirez, D; Schutt, K; Montoya, J; Mesa, S; Lim, J

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: American Chemical Society
• Journal: Journal of Physical Chemistry C
• Volume: 122
• Issue: 37
• Pages: 21239–21247
• Publication date: 2018-08-28
• Acceptance date: 2018-08-28
• DOI: 10.1021/acs.jpcc.8b07124
• EISSN: 1932-7455
• ISSN: 1932-7447