Optimization of Light-Management Strategies in All-Perovskite Four-Terminal Tandem Solar Cells: Efficiency Enhancement and Optical Loss Analysis

Abstract

All-perovskite four-terminal tandem solar cells offer a promising platform for high-efficiency photovoltaics due to their electrical independence and flexible subcell optimization. However, optical losses such as interfacial reflection and parasitic absorption limit device performance. In this study, a systematic light-management optimization framework was established, and multiphysics simulations were employed to reveal how perovskite layer thickness, intermediate light-coupling layer (ILCL) materials and thickness, and top cell structural inversion collaboratively regulate light distribution, electromagnetic field phase, and transmission and reflection characteristics. Optimizing the perovskite layer thickness balances light absorption between subcells, increasing the power conversion efficiency (PCE) from 25.0% to 26.1%. Further introduction of the ILCL with phase-control design enhances optical coupling, raising the PCE to 28.10%. Numerical simulations indicate that top cell structural inversion effectively suppresses long-wavelength reflection and enhances bottom cell absorption, resulting in a simulated PCE of 33.73%, approaching the theoretical limit predicted by a semiempirical model guided by experimental data. Quantitative analysis based on admittance and phase matching elucidates the optical mechanisms, providing generalizable guidance for the design of multijunction photovoltaic devices. These results demonstrate that a unified light-management strategy not only systematically enhances device performance but also provides deep insights into the optical physics of all-perovskite tandem solar cells.

Keywords

all-perovskite four-terminal tandem solar cells / intermediate light-coupling layer / light management

References

[1] K. M. Yeom, S. U. Kim, M. Y. Woo, J. H. Noh, and S. H. Im, “Recent Progress in Metal Halide Perovskite-Based Tandem Solar Cells,” Advanced Materials 32, no. 51 (2020): 2002228.

[2] W. Jiao, Y. Song, J. Wang, et al., “Molecular Bridging at Buried Interface Enables Efficient Wide-Bandgap Perovskite Solar Cells,” Advanced Energy Materials 15, no. 29 (2025): 2501556.

[3] E. Danladi, M. Kashif, A. Ichoja, and B. B. Ayiya, “Modeling of a Sn-Based HTM-Free Perovskite Solar Cell Using a One-Dimensional Solar Cell Capacitance Simulator Tool,” Transactions of Tianjin University 29 (2022): 62–72.

[4] N. J. Zadeh, M. B. Zarandi, and M. R. Nateghi, “Optical Properties of the Perovskite Films Deposited on Meso-Porous TiO₂ by One Step and Hot Casting Techniques,” Thin Solid Films 671 (2019): 139–146.

[5] F. Behrouznejad, S. Shahbazi, N. Taghavinia, H. P. Wu, and E. Wei-Guang Diau, “A Study on Utilizing Different Metals as the Back Contact of CH₃NH₃PbI₃ Perovskite Solar Cells,” Journal of Materials Chemistry A 4, no. 35 (2016): 13488–13498.

[6] M. A. Green, E. D. Dunlop, M. Yoshita, et al., “Solar Cell Efficiency Tables (Version 65),” Progress in Photovoltaics: Research and Applications 33, no. 1 (2025): 3–15.

[7] M. T. Hörantner, T. Leijtens, M. E. Ziffer, et al., “The Potential of Multijunction Perovskite Solar Cells,” ACS Energy Letters 2, no. 10 (2017): 2506–2513.

[8] T. Leijtens, K. A. Bush, R. Prasanna, and M. D. McGehee, “Opportunities and Challenges for Tandem Solar Cells Using Metal Halide Perovskite Semiconductors,” Nature Energy 3, no. 10 (2018): 828–838.

[9] X. Zheng, A. Y. Alsalloum, Y. Hou, E. H. Sargent, and O. M. Bakr, “All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells: A Roadmap to Uniting High Efficiency With High Stability,” Accounts of Materials Research 1, no. 1 (2020): 63–76.

[10] E. T. Hoke, D. J. Slotcavage, E. R. Dohner, A. R. Bowring, H. I. Karunadasa, and M. D. McGehee, “Reversible Photo-Induced Trap Formation in Mixed-Halide Hybrid Perovskites for Photovoltaics,” Chemical Science 6, no. 1 (2015): 613–617.

[11] A. U. Duha and M. F. Borunda, “Optimization of a Pb-Free All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cell With 30.85% Efficiency,” Optical Materials 123 (2022): 111891.

[12] L. Tang, L. Zeng, J. Luo, et al., “All-Round Passivation Strategy Yield Flexible Perovskite/CuInGaSe₂ Tandem Solar Cells With Efficiency Exceeding 26.5%,” Advanced Materials 36, no. 28 (2024): 2402480.

[13] M. Moradbeigi and M. Razaghi, “Optical–Electrical Simulation and Optimization of an Efficient Lead-Free 2T All Perovskite Tandem Solar Cell,” Renewable Energy 220 (2024): 119723.

[14] Y. Bao, T. Ma, Z. Ai, et al., “Insights into Efficiency Deviation From Current-Mismatch for Tandem Photovoltaics,” Nano Energy 120 (2024): 109165.

[15] Y. Gao, R. Lin, K. Xiao, et al., “Performance Optimization of Monolithic All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells Under Standard and Real-World Solar Spectra,” Joule 6, no. 8 (2022): 1944–1963.

[16] S. Du, Y. Guo, C. Wang, et al., “Improving Crystallization of Wide-Bandgap Lead Halide Perovskite for All-Perovskite Tandems,” Advanced Energy Materials 15, no. 16 (2025): 2404180.

[17] J. Lim, N. G. Park, S. Il Seok, and M. Saliba, “All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells: From Fundamentals to Technological Progress,” Energy & Environmental Science 17, no. 13 (2024): 4390–4425.

[18] M. Moradbeigi and M. Razaghi, “Investigation of Optical and Electrical Properties of Novel 4T All Perovskite Tandem Solar Cell,” Scientific Reports 12, no. 1 (2022): 6733.

[19] S. Wu, M. Liu, and A. K. Y. Jen, “Prospects and Challenges for Perovskite-Organic Tandem Solar Cells,” Joule 7, no. 3 (2023): 484–502.

[20] J. Li, J. Yang, and X. Liu, “Overcome Limited Efficiency in All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells Upon Light Management at Top Perovskite-Transparent Electrode Interfaces,” Advanced Electronic Materials 11, no. 13 (2025): 2500019.

[21] F. Qian, S. Yuan, L. Wang, et al., “Light Utilization Optimization of Semi-Transparent Perovskite Solar Modules via Constructing p–n Homojunction for Efficient Four-Terminal Tandem Devices,” Nano Energy 140 (2025): 111070.

[22] Q. H. Chen, Y. Zhang, P. Huang, et al., “Optical, Electrical, Thermal, Stress, and Energy Yield Simulations Enhance the Performance and Stability of Perovskite Photovoltaics,” Advanced Materials 38 (2026): e14184.

[23] H. Q. Tan, X. Zhao, A. Jiao, E. Birgersson, and H. Xue, “Optimizing Bifacial All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cell: How to Balance Light Absorption and Recombination,” Solar Energy 231 (2022): 1092–1106.

[24] R. Mishima, W. Yoshida, H. Ishibashi, et al., “Luminescence Coupling in 28.4%-Efficient Tandem Solar Cell Utilizing 20.8%-Efficient Perovskite Minimodule Stacked on Silicon Cell,” Applied Physics Letters 123, no. 26 (2023): 263510.

[25] A. Hajjiah, F. Parmouneh, A. Hadipour, M. Jaysankar, and T. Aernouts, “Light Management Enhancement for Four-Terminal Perovskite-Silicon Tandem Solar Cells: The Impact of the Optical Properties and Thickness of the Spacer Layer Between Sub-Cells,” Materials 11, no. 12 (2018): 2570.

[26] G. Yu, C. Shou, Z. Yang, et al., “Optical Management of Spacer Layer of High-Performance Four-Terminal Perovskite/Silicon Tandem Solar Cells,” Solar Energy 228 (2021): 226–234.

[27] C. Wang, Y. Zhao, T. Ma, et al., “A Universal Close-Space Annealing Strategy Towards High-Quality Perovskite Absorbers Enabling Efficient All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells,” Nature Energy 7, no. 8 (2022): 744–753.

[28] S. Dabbabi, A. Garcia-Loureiro, M. Ajili, T. Ben Nasr, and N. Kamoun, “Experimental and Simulation Studies on FTO/ZnO:Co/CuO Hetero-Junction Structure for Solar Cell Application,” Materials Research Express 6, no. 10 (2019): 1050b6.

[29] K. Ghimire, D. Zhao, Y. Yan, and N. J. Podraza, “Optical Response of Mixed Methylammonium Lead Iodide and Formamidinium Tin Iodide Perovskite Thin Films,” AIP Advances 7, no. 7 (2017): 075108.

[30] Z. C. Holman, M. Filipič, A. Descoeudres, et al., “Infrared Light Management in High-Efficiency Silicon Heterojunction and Rear-Passivated Solar Cells,” Journal of Applied Physics 113, no. 1 (2013): 013107.

[31] M. N. Polyanskiy, “Refractiveindex.INFO Database of Optical Constants,” Scientific Data 11, no. 1 (2024): 94.

[32] J. Werner, G. Nogay, F. Sahli, et al., “Complex Refractive Indices of Cesium–Formamidinium-Based Mixed-Halide Perovskites With Optical Band Gaps From 1.5 to 1.8 eV,” ACS Energy Letters 3, no. 3 (2018): 742–747.

[33] A. Mohandes, M. Moradi, and M. Kanani, “Numerical Analysis of High Performance Perovskite Solar Cells With Stacked ETLs/C₆₀ Using SCAPS-1D Device Simulator,” Optical and Quantum Electronics 55, no. 6 (2023): 533.

[34] M. K. Hossain, G. F. I. Toki, A. Kuddus, et al., “An Extensive Study on Multiple ETL and HTL Layers to Design and Simulation of High-Performance Lead-Free CsSnCl₃-based Perovskite Solar Cells,” Scientific Reports 13, no. 1 (2023): 2521.

[35] M. Kumar, A. Raj, A. Kumar, and A. Anshul, “Computational Analysis of Bandgap Tuning, Admittance and Impedance Spectroscopy Measurements in Lead-Free MASnI₃ Perovskite Solar Cell Device,” International Journal of Energy Research 46, no. 8 (2022): 11456–11469.

[36] K. Deepthi Jayan and V. Sebastian, “Comprehensive Device Modelling and Performance Analysis of MASnI₃ Based Perovskite Solar Cells With Diverse ETM, HTM and Back Metal Contacts,” Solar Energy 217 (2021): 40–48.

[37] M. K. Mainali, P. Uprety, Z. Song, et al., “Terahertz Optical Hall Effect Determination of Carrier Concentrations in Component Layers Within Low Bandgap Tin–Lead Halide Perovskite Photovoltaics and Device Simulation,” Materials Science in Semiconductor Processing 170 (2024): 107936.

[38] G. Shankar, P. Kumar, and B. Pradhan, “All-Perovskite Two-Terminal Tandem Solar Cell With 32.3% Efficiency by Numerical Simulation,” Materials Today Sustainability 20 (2022): 100241.

[39] X. Hu, J. Li, C. Wang, et al., “Antimony Potassium Tartrate Stabilizes Wide-Bandgap Perovskites for Inverted 4-T All-Perovskite Tandem Solar Cells With Efficiencies Over 26,” Nano-Micro Letters 15, no. 1 (2023): 103.

[40] P. Jia, G. Chen, G. Li, et al., “Intermediate Phase Suppression With Long Chain Diammonium Alkane for High Performance Wide-Bandgap and Tandem Perovskite Solar Cells,” Advanced Materials 36, no. 25 (2024): 2400105.

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

2026 The Author(s). Carbon Neutralization published by Wenzhou University and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.