Abstract
Organometal trihalide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have sparked a frantic excitement in the scientific community because they can achieve high power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) even when fabricated by low-cost solution-processing technologies. However, the poor stability of PSCs has seriously hindered their commercialization. Among various kinds of PSCs, carbon-based PSCs without hole transport materials (C-PSCs) seem to be the most promising for addressing the stability issue because carbon materials are stable, inert to ion migration, and inherently water-resistant. Concurrent with the steady rise in PCE of C-PSCs, great progresses have also been attained on the device stability and scaling-up fabrication of C-PSCs, which have well signified the possible commercialization of PSCs in the near future. In this review, we will summarize these progresses with a view of exposing the promising prospect. We start by collating recent stability testing results of C-PSCs with reference to those of HTM-PSCs. Then, we update the research status on large-scale C-PSCs and their associated scalable fabrication technologies. Finally, we identify main issues to be addressed alongside future research directions.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
NREL: (2017). Available at: https://www.nrel.gov/pv/assets/images/efficiency-chart.png (accessed July, 2017).
X. Li, D. Bi, C. Yi, J.D. Decoppet, J. Luo, S.M. Zakeeruddin, A. Hagfeldt, and M. Gratzel: A vacuum flash-assisted solution process for high-efficiency large-area perovskite solar cells. Science 353, 58 (2016).
A. Kojima, K. Teshima, Y. Shirai, and T. Miyasaka: Organometal halide perovskites as visible-light sensitizers for photovoltaic cells. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 131, 6050 (2009).
W.S. Yang, J.H. Noh, N.J. Jeon, Y.C. Kim, S. Ryu, J. Seo, and S.I. Seok: Solar cells high-performance photovoltaic perovskite layers fabricated through intramolecular exchange. Science 348, 1234 (2015).
Y. Bai, H.N. Chen, S. Xiao, Q.F. Xue, T. Zhang, Z.L. Zhu, Q. Li, C. Hu, Y. Yang, Z.C. Hu, F. Huang, K.S. Wong, H.L. Yip, and S.H. Yang: Effects of a molecular monolayer modification of NiO nanocrystal layer surfaces on perovskite crystallization and interface contact toward faster hole extraction and higher photovoltaic performance. Adv. Funct. Mater. 26, 2950 (2016).
K. Yan, M. Long, T. Zhang, Z. Wei, H. Chen, S. Yang, and J. Xu: Hybrid halide perovskite solar cell precursors: Colloidal chemistry and coordination engineering behind device processing for high efficiency. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 137, 4460 (2015).
J.H. Im, I.H. Jang, N. Pellet, M. Gratzel, and N.G. Park: Growth of CH3NH3PbI3 cuboids with controlled size for high-efficiency perovskite solar cells. Nat. Nanotechnol. 9, 927 (2014).
N.J. Jeon, J.H. Noh, Y.C. Kim, W.S. Yang, S. Ryu, and S.I. Seok: Solvent engineering for high-performance inorganic–organic hybrid perovskite solar cells. Nat. Mater. 13, 897 (2014).
T. Zhang, H. Chen, Y. Bai, S. Xiao, L. Zhu, C. Hu, Q. Xue, and S. Yang: Understanding the relationship between ion migration and the anomalous hysteresis in high-efficiency perovskite solar cells: A fresh perspective from halide substitution. Nano Energy 26, 620 (2016).
D. Bi, W. Tress, M.I. Dar, P. Gao, J. Luo, C. Renevier, K. Schenk, A. Abate, F. Giordano, J.P. Correa Baena, J.D. Decoppet, S.M. Zakeeruddin, M.K. Nazeeruddin, M. Gratzel, and A. Hagfeldt: Efficient luminescent solar cells based on tailored mixed-cation perovskites. Sci. Adv. 2, e1501170 (2016).
D. Bi, C. Yi, J. Luo, J-D. Décoppet, F. Zhang, S.M. Zakeeruddin, X. Li, A. Hagfeldt, and M. Grätzel: Polymer-templated nucleation and crystal growth of perovskite films for solar cells with efficiency greater than 21%. Nat. Energy 1, 16142 (2016).
Y. Zhou and K. Zhu: Perovskite solar cells shine in the “valley of the sun”. ACS Energy Lett. 1(1), 64 (2016).
S.Y. Sun, T. Salim, N. Mathews, M. Duchamp, C. Boothroyd, G.C. Xing, T.C. Sum, and Y.M. Lam: The origin of high efficiency in low-temperature solution-processable bilayer organometal halide hybrid solar cells. Energy Environ. Sci. 7, 399 (2014).
C.S. Ponseca, Jr., T.J. Savenije, M. Abdellah, K. Zheng, A. Yartsev, T. Pascher, T. Harlang, P. Chabera, T. Pullerits, A. Stepanov, J.P. Wolf, and V. Sundstrom: Organometal halide perovskite solar cell materials rationalized: Ultrafast charge generation, high and microsecond-long balanced mobilities, and slow recombination. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 136, 5189 (2014).
Q. Dong, Y. Fang, Y. Shao, P. Mulligan, J. Qiu, L. Cao, and J. Huang: Electron-hole diffusion lengths >175 mum in solution-grown CH3NH3PbI3 single crystals. Science 347, 967 (2015).
D. Shi, V. Adinolfi, R. Comin, M. Yuan, E. Alarousu, A. Buin, Y. Chen, S. Hoogland, A. Rothenberger, K. Katsiev, Y. Losovyj, X. Zhang, P.A. Dowben, O.F. Mohammed, E.H. Sargent, and O.M. Bakr: Low trap-state density and long carrier diffusion in organolead trihalide perovskite single crystals. Science 347, 519 (2015).
K-G. Lim, S. Ahn, Y-H. Kim, Y. Qi, and T-W. Lee: Universal energy level tailoring of self-organized hole extraction layers in organic solar cells and organic–inorganic hybrid perovskite solar cells. Energy Environ. Sci. 9, 932 (2016).
S.D. Stranks, G.E. Eperon, G. Grancini, C. Menelaou, M.J. Alcocer, T. Leijtens, L.M. Herz, A. Petrozza, and H.J. Snaith: Electron-hole diffusion lengths exceeding 1 micrometer in an organometal trihalide perovskite absorber. Science 342, 341 (2013).
G. Xing, N. Mathews, S. Sun, S.S. Lim, Y.M. Lam, M. Gratzel, S. Mhaisalkar, and T.C. Sum: Long-range balanced electron- and hole-transport lengths in organic–inorganic CH3NH3PbI3. Science 342, 344 (2013).
V. D’Innocenzo, G. Grancini, M.J. Alcocer, A.R. Kandada, S.D. Stranks, M.M. Lee, G. Lanzani, H.J. Snaith, and A. Petrozza: Excitons versus free charges in organo-lead tri-halide perovskites. Nat. Commun. 5, 3586 (2014).
T.A. Berhe, W.N. Su, C.H. Chen, C.J. Pan, J.H. Cheng, H.M. Chen, M.C. Tsai, L.Y. Chen, A.A. Dubale, and B.J. Hwang: Organometal halide perovskite solar cells: Degradation and stability. Energy Environ. Sci. 9, 323 (2016).
P. Docampo and T. Bein: A long-term view on perovskite optoelectronics. Acc. Chem. Res. 49, 339 (2016).
M. Shahbazi and H. Wang: Progress in research on the stability of organometal perovskite solar cells. J. Sol. Energy 123, 74 (2016).
D. Wang, M. Wright, N.K. Elumalai, and A. Uddin: Stability of perovskite solar cells. Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells 147, 255 (2016).
M.D. Ye, X.D. Hong, F.Y. Zhang, and X.Y. Liu: Recent advancements in perovskite solar cells: Flexibility, stability and large scale. J. Mater. Chem. A 4, 6755 (2016).
H. Back, G. Kim, J. Kim, J. Kong, T.K. Kim, H. Kang, H. Kim, J. Lee, S. Lee, and K. Lee: Achieving long-term stable perovskite solar cells via ion neutralization. Energy Environ. Sci. 9, 1258 (2016).
K. Domanski, J-P. Correa-Baena, N. Mine, M.K. Nazeeruddin, A. Abate, M. Saliba, W. Tress, A. Hagfeldt, and M. Grätzel: Not all that glitters is gold: Metal migration-induced degradation in perovskite solar cells. ACS Nano 10, 6306 (2016).
L. Etgar, P. Gao, Z. Xue, Q. Peng, A.K. Chandiran, B. Liu, M.K. Nazeeruddin, and M. Gratzel: Mesoscopic CH3NH3PbI3/TiO2 heterojunction solar cells. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 134, 17396 (2012).
Z. Ku, Y. Rong, M. Xu, T. Liu, and H. Han: Full printable processed mesoscopic CH3NH3PbI3/TiO2 heterojunction solar cells with carbon counter electrode. Sci. Rep. 3, 3132 (2013).
A. Mei, X. Li, L. Liu, Z. Ku, T. Liu, Y. Rong, M. Xu, M. Hu, J. Chen, Y. Yang, M. Gratzel, and H. Han: A hole-conductor-free, fully printable mesoscopic perovskite solar cell with high stability. Science 345, 295 (2014).
Z. Wei, H. Chen, K. Yan, and S. Yang: Inkjet printing and instant chemical transformation of a CH3NH3PbI3/nanocarbon electrode and interface for planar perovskite solar cells. Angew. Chem. 53, 13239 (2014).
F. Zhang, X. Yang, H. Wang, M. Cheng, J. Zhao, and L. Sun: Structure engineering of hole-conductor free perovskite-based solar cells with low-temperature-processed commercial carbon paste as cathode. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 6, 16140 (2014).
H.N. Chen, Z.H. Wei, X.L. Zheng, and S.H. Yang: A scalable electrodeposition route to the low-cost, versatile and controllable fabrication of perovskite solar cells. Nano Energy 15, 216 (2015).
Z.H. Wei, X.L. Zheng, H.N. Chen, X. Long, Z.L. Wang, and S.H. Yang: A multifunctional C plus epoxy/Ag-paint cathode enables efficient and stable operation of perovskite solar cells in watery environments. J. Mater. Chem. A 3, 16430 (2015).
W.A. Laban and L. Etgar: Depleted hole conductor-free lead halide iodide heterojunction solar cells. Energy Environ. Sci. 6, 3249 (2013).
Z. Ku, X. Xia, H. Shen, N.H. Tiep, and H.J. Fan: A mesoporous nickel counter electrode for printable and reusable perovskite solar cells. Nanoscale 7, 13363 (2015).
Z.H. Wei, K.Y. Yan, H.N. Chen, Y. Yi, T. Zhang, X. Long, J.K. Li, L.X. Zhang, J.N. Wang, and S.H. Yang: Cost-efficient clamping solar cells using candle soot for hole extraction from ambipolar perovskites. Energy Environ. Sci. 7, 3326 (2014).
H. Chen, Z. Wei, K. Yan, Y. Yi, J. Wang, and S. Yang: Liquid phase deposition of TiO2 nanolayer affords CH3NH3PbI3/nanocarbon solar cells with high open-circuit voltage. Faraday Discuss. 176, 271 (2014).
H. Chen and S. Yang: High-quality perovskite in thick scaffold: A core issue for hole transport material-free perovskite solar cells. Sci. Bull. 61, 1680 (2016).
H. Zhou, Y. Shi, Q. Dong, H. Zhang, Y. Xing, K. Wang, Y. Du, and T. Ma: Hole-conductor-free, metal-electrode-free TiO2/CH3NH3PbI3 heterojunction solar cells based on a low-temperature carbon electrode. J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 5, 3241 (2014).
H. Chen and S. Yang: Carbon-based perovskite solar cells without hole transport materials: The front runner to the market?Adv. Mater. 29, 1603994 (2017).
Y. Rong, X. Hou, Y. Hu, A. Mei, L. Liu, P. Wang, and H. Han: Synergy of ammonium chloride and moisture on perovskite crystallization for efficient printable mesoscopic solar cells. Nat. Commun. 8, 14555 (2017).
H. Zhang, H. Wang, S.T. Williams, D. Xiong, W. Zhang, C-C. Chueh, W. Chen, and A.K.Y. Jen: SrCl2 derived perovskite facilitating a high efficiency of 16% in hole-conductor-free fully printable mesoscopic perovskite solar cells. Adv. Mater. 29, 1606608 (2017).
X. Zheng, H. Chen, Q. Li, Y. Yang, Z. Wei, Y. Bai, Y. Qiu, D. Zhou, K.S. Wong, and S. Yang: Boron doping of multiwalled carbon nanotubes significantly enhances hole extraction in carbon-based perovskite solar cells. Nano Lett. 17, 2496 (2017).
H. Chen, X. Zheng, Q. Li, Y. Yang, S. Xiao, C. Hu, Y. Bai, T. Zhang, K.S. Wong, and S. Yang: An amorphous precursor route to the conformable oriented crystallization of CH3NH3PbBr3 in mesoporous scaffolds: Toward efficient and thermally stable carbon-based perovskite solar cells. J. Mater. Chem. A 4, 12897 (2016).
H.N. Chen, Z.H. Wei, H.X. He, X.L. Zheng, K.S. Wong, and S.H. Yang: Solvent engineering boosts the efficiency of paintable carbon-based perovskite solar cells to beyond 14%. Adv. Energy Mater. 6, 1502087 (2016).
X. Chang, W. Li, H. Chen, L. Zhu, H. Liu, H. Geng, S. Xiang, J. Liu, X. Zheng, Y. Yang, and S. Yang: Colloidal precursor-induced growth of ultra-even CH3NH3PbI3 for high-performance paintable carbon-based perovskite solar cells. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 8, 30184 (2016).
Y. Sheng, Y. Hu, A. Mei, P. Jiang, X. Hou, M. Duan, L. Hong, Y. Guan, Y. Rong, Y. Xiong, and H. Han: Enhanced electronic properties in CH3NH3PbI3 via LiCl mixing for hole-conductor-free printable perovskite solar cells. J. Mater. Chem. A 4, 16731 (2016).
C.Y. Chan, Y.Y. Wang, G.W. Wu, and E.W.G. Diau: Solvent-extraction crystal growth for highly efficient carbon-based mesoscopic perovskite solar cells free of hole conductors. J. Mater. Chem. A 4, 3872 (2016).
W. Chen, Y. Wu, Y. Yue, J. Liu, W. Zhang, X. Yang, H. Chen, E. Bi, I. Ashraful, M. Gratzel, and L. Han: Efficient and stable large-area perovskite solar cells with inorganic charge extraction layers. Science 350, 944 (2015).
X. Li, M. Tschumi, H.W. Han, S.S. Babkair, R.A. Alzubaydi, A.A. Ansari, S.S. Habib, M.K. Nazeeruddin, S.M. Zakeeruddin, and M. Gratzel: Outdoor performance and stability under elevated temperatures and long-term light soaking of triple-layer mesoporous perovskite photovoltaics. Energy Technol. 3, 551 (2015).
A.K. Baranwal, S. Kanaya, T.A.N. Peiris, G. Mizuta, T. Nishina, H. Kanda, T. Miyasaka, H. Segawa, and S. Ito: 100 °C thermal stability of printable perovskite solar cells using porous carbon counter electrodes. ChemSusChem 9, 2517 (2016).
Y. Hu, S. Si, A. Mei, Y. Rong, H. Liu, X. Li, and H. Han: Stable large-area (10 × 10 cm2) printable mesoscopic perovskite module exceeding 10% efficiency. Sol. RRL 1, 1600019 (2017).
F. Bella, G. Griffini, J-P. Correa-Baena, G. Saracco, M. Grätzel, A. Hagfeldt, S. Turri, and C. Gerbaldi: Improving efficiency and stability of perovskite solar cells with photocurable fluoropolymers. Science 354, 203 (2016).
H. Tan, A. Jain, O. Voznyy, X. Lan, F.P. Garcia de Arquer, J.Z. Fan, R. Quintero-Bermudez, M. Yuan, B. Zhang, Y. Zhao, F. Fan, P. Li, L.N. Quan, Y. Zhao, Z.H. Lu, Z. Yang, S. Hoogland, and E.H. Sargent: Efficient and stable solution-processed planar perovskite solar cells via contact passivation. Science 355, 722 (2017).
M. Saliba, T. Matsui, K. Domanski, J.Y. Seo, A. Ummadisingu, S.M. Zakeeruddin, J.P. Correa-Baena, W.R. Tress, A. Abate, A. Hagfeldt, and M. Gratzel: Incorporation of rubidium cations into perovskite solar cells improves photovoltaic performance. Science 354, 206 (2016).
H. Tsai, W. Nie, J-C. Blancon, C.C. Stoumpos, R. Asadpour, B. Harutyunyan, A.J. Neukirch, R. Verduzco, J.J. Crochet, S. Tretiak, L. Pedesseau, J. Even, M.A. Alam, G. Gupta, J. Lou, P.M. Ajayan, M.J. Bedzyk, M.G. Kanatzidis, and A.D. Mohite: High-efficiency two-dimensional Ruddlesden–Popper perovskite solar cells. Nature 536, 312 (2016).
S.S. Shin, E.J. Yeom, W.S. Yang, S. Hur, M.G. Kim, J. Im, J. Seo, J.H. Noh, and S.I. Seok: Colloidally prepared La-doped BaSnO3 electrodes for efficient, photostable perovskite solar cells. Science 356, 167 (2017).
Z.H. Wei, H.N. Chen, K.Y. Yan, X.L. Zheng, and S.H. Yang: Hysteresis-free multi-walled carbon nanotube-based perovskite solar cells with a high fill factor. J. Mater. Chem. A 3, 24226 (2015).
Z.H. Yu, B.L. Chen, P. Liu, C.L. Wang, C.H. Bu, N.A. Cheng, S.H. Bai, Y.F. Yan, and X.Z. Zhao: Stable organic–inorganic perovskite solar cells without hole-conductor layer achieved via cell structure design and contact engineering. Adv. Funct. Mater. 26, 4866 (2016).
A. Priyadarshi, L.J. Haur, P. Murray, D. Fu, S. Kulkarni, G. Xing, T.C. Sum, N. Mathews, and S.G. Mhaisalkar: A large area (70 cm2) monolithic perovskite solar module with a high efficiency and stability. Energy Environ. Sci. 9, 3687 (2016).
S-G. Li, K-J. Jiang, M-J. Su, X-P. Cui, J-H. Huang, Q-Q. Zhang, X-Q. Zhou, L-M. Yang, and Y-L. Song: Inkjet printing of CH3NH3PbI3 on a mesoscopic TiO2 film for highly efficient perovskite solar cells. J. Mater. Chem. A 3, 9092 (2015).
K. Hwang, Y-S. Jung, Y-J. Heo, F.H. Scholes, S.E. Watkins, J. Subbiah, D.J. Jones, D-Y. Kim, and D. Vak: Toward large scale roll-to-roll production of fully printed perovskite solar cells. Adv. Mater. 27, 1241 (2015).
C. Longhua, L. Lusheng, W. Jifeng, D. Bin, G. Lili, and F. Bin: Large area perovskite solar cell module. J. Semicond. 38, 014006 (2017).
Z. Zhou, Z. Wang, Y. Zhou, S. Pang, D. Wang, H. Xu, Z. Liu, N.P. Padture, and G. Cui: Methylamine-gas-induced defect-healing behavior of CH3NH3PbI3 thin films for perovskite solar cells. Angew. Chem. 127, 9841 (2015).
S. Pang, Y. Zhou, Z. Wang, M. Yang, A.R. Krause, Z. Zhou, K. Zhu, N.P. Padture, and G. Cui: Transformative evolution of organolead triiodide perovskite thin films from strong room-temperature solid-gas interaction between HPbI3–CH3NH2 precursor pair. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 138, 750 (2016).
Y. Zhao and K. Zhu: Optical bleaching of perovskite (CH3NH3)PbI3 through room-temperature phase transformation induced by ammonia. Chem. Commun. 50, 1605 (2014).
Z. Xiao, Q. Dong, C. Bi, Y. Shao, Y. Yuan, and J. Huang: Solvent annealing of perovskite-induced crystal growth for photovoltaic-device efficiency enhancement. Adv. Mater. 26, 6503 (2014).
Y. Wu, W. Chen, Y. Yue, J. Liu, E. Bi, X. Yang, A. Islam, and L. Han: Consecutive morphology controlling operations for highly reproducible mesostructured perovskite solar cells. ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces 7, 20707 (2015).
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This work is financially supported by the Young Talent of “Zhuoyue” Program of Beihang University, the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 51371020 and 21603010), the HK-RGC General Research Funds (GRF Nos. 16312216 and 16300915), and the HK Innovation and Technology Fund (ITS/219/16).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding authors
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Chen, H., Yang, S. Stabilizing and scaling up carbon-based perovskite solar cells. Journal of Materials Research 32, 3011–3020 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1557/jmr.2017.294
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1557/jmr.2017.294