Mitigation of parasitic leakage current in indoor perovskite photovoltaic modules using porous alumina interlayer

Abstract

Indoor photovoltaics are limited by their inherently low-photogenerated carrier density, leading to heightened carrier recombination and adverse leakage currents compared with conventional solar cells operating under 1 sun condition. To address these problems, this work incorporates a porous insulating interlayer (Al₂O₃) in perovskite devices, which effectively mitigates recombination and parasitic leakage current. A systematic investigation of the relationship between shunt resistance, photocarrier generation, and recombination at different light intensities demonstrates the effectiveness of the alumina interlayer in perovskite solar cells under low-light conditions. Moreover, the practicability of the alumina interlayer was demonstrated through its successful implementation in a large-area perovskite solar module (PSM). With bandgap engineering, the optimized PSM achieves a remarkable power conversion efficiency of 33.5% and a record-breaking power density of 107.3 μW cm⁻² under 1000 lux illumination. These results underscore the potential of alumina interlayers in improving energy harvesting performance, particularly in low-light indoor environments.

Keywords

alumina interlayer / low-light intensity / parasitic leakage current / perovskite solar cells / photovoltaic devices

References

[1] Carnemolla P. Ageing in place and the internet of things–how smart home technologies, the built environment and caregiving intersect. Vis Eng. 2018;6(1):7.

[2] Zanella A, Bui N, Castellani A, Vangelista L, Zorzi M. Internet of things for smart cities. IEEE Internet Things J. 2014;1(1):22-32.

[3] Islam SR, Kwak D, Kabir MH, Hossain M, Kwak K-S. The internet of things for health care: a comprehensive survey. IEEE Access. 2015;3:678-708.

[4] Wollschlaeger M, Sauter T, Jasperneite J. The future of industrial communication: automation networks in the era of the internet of things and industry 4.0. IEEE Ind Electron Mag. 2017;11(1):17-27.

[5] Mathews I, Kantareddy SN, Buonassisi T, Peters IM. Technology and market perspective for indoor photovoltaic cells. Joule. 2019;3(6):1415-1426.

[6] Mathews I, Kantareddy SNR, Sun S, et al. Self-powered sensors enabled by wide-bandgap perovskite indoor photovoltaic cells. Adv Funct Mater. 2019;29(42):1904072.

[7] Wojciechowski K, Forgács D. Commercial applications of indoor photovoltaics based on flexible perovskite solar cells. ACS Energy Lett. 2022;7(10):3729-3733.

[8] Bing J, Caro LG, Talathi HP, Chang NL, McKenzie DR, Ho-Baillie AWY. Perovskite solar cells for building integrated photovoltaics—glazing applications. Joule. 2022;6(7):1446-1474.

[9] Brenner TM, Egger DA, Kronik L, Hodes G, Cahen D. Hybrid organic—inorganic perovskites: low-cost semiconductors with intriguing charge-transport properties. Nat Rev Mater. 2016;1(1):15007.

[10] Jeon NJ, Na H, Jung EH, et al. A fluorene-terminated hole-transporting material for highly efficient and stable perovskite solar cells. Nat Energy. 2018;3(8):682-689.

[11] Yang WS, Park B-W, Jung EH, et al. Iodide management in formamidinium-lead-halide–based perovskite layers for efficient solar cells. Science. 2017;356(6345):1376-1379.

[12] Hwang S, Yasuda T. Indoor photovoltaic energy harvesting based on semiconducting π-conjugated polymers and oligomeric materials toward future IoT applications. Polym J. 2023;55(4):297-316.

[13] Russo J, Ray W, Litz MS. Low light illumination study on commercially available homojunction photovoltaic cells. Appl Energy. 2017;191:10-21.

[14] Shirvanimoghaddam M, Shirvanimoghaddam K, Abolhasani MM, et al. Towards a green and self-powered internet of things using piezoelectric energy harvesting. IEEE Access. 2019;7:94533-94556.

[15] Chiang C-H, Wu C-G. Large-area perovskite film prepared by new FFASE method for stable solar modules having high efficiency under both outdoor and indoor light harvesting. Adv Sci. 2023;10(7):2205967.

[16] Chen Z, Wang T, Wen Z, et al. Trap state induced recombination effects on indoor organic photovoltaic cells. ACS Energy Lett. 2021;6(9):3203-3211.

[17] Zeiske S, Sandberg OJ, Zarrabi N, Li W, Meredith P, Armin A. Direct observation of trap-assisted recombination in organic photovoltaic devices. Nat Commun. 2021;12(1):3603.

[18] Shin SJ, Alosaimi G, Choi MJ, et al. Strategic approach for frustrating charge recombination of perovskite solar cells in low-intensity indoor light: insertion of polar small molecules at the interface of the electron transport layer. ACS Appl Energy Mater. 2022;5(11):13234-13242.

[19] Park SY, Li Y, Kim J, et al. Alkoxybenzothiadiazole-based fullerene and nonfullerene polymer solar cells with high shunt resistance for indoor photovoltaic applications. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2018;10(4):3885-3894.

[20] Nv R, Van Sark W, Alsema E, et al. Crystalline silicon cell performance at low light intensities. Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells. 2009;93(9):1471-1481.

[21] Li Q, Shen K, Yang R, et al. Comparative study of GaAs and CdTe solar cell performance under low-intensity light irradiance. Sol Energy. 2017;157:216-226.

[22] Feldmann F, Bivour M, Reichel C, Steinkemper H, Hermle M, Glunz SW. Tunnel oxide passivated contacts as an alternative to partial rear contacts. Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells. 2014;131:46-50.

[23] Feldmann F, Bivour M, Reichel C, Hermle M, Glunz SW. Passivated rear contacts for high-efficiency n-type Si solar cells providing high interface passivation quality and excellent transport characteristics. Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells. 2014;120:270-274.

[24] Peng W, Mao K, Cai F, et al. Reducing nonradiative recombination in perovskite solar cells with a porous insulator contact. Science. 2023;379(6633):683-690.

[25] Ann MH, Kim J, Kim M, et al. Device design rules and operation principles of high-power perovskite solar cells for indoor applications. Nano Energy. 2020;68:104321.

[26] Chung J, Shin SS, Hwang K, et al. Record-efficiency flexible perovskite solar cell and module enabled by a porous-planar structure as an electron transport layer. Energ Environ Sci. 2020;13(12):4854-4861.

[27] Ramirez D, Schutt K, Montoya JF, et al. Meso-superstructured perovskite solar cells: revealing the role of the mesoporous layer. J Phys Chem C. 2018;122(37):21239-21247.

[28] Cui Y, Hong L, Zhang T, et al. Accurate photovoltaic measurement of organic cells for indoor applications. Joule. 2021;5(5):1016-1023.

[29] Bi Z, Xu X, Chen X, et al. High-performance large-area blade-coated perovskite solar cells with low ohmic loss for low lighting indoor applications. Chem Eng J. 2022;446:137164.

[30] Chegaar M, Hamzaoui A, Namoda A, Petit P, Aillerie M, Herguth A. Effect of illumination intensity on solar cells parameters. Energy Procedia. 2013;36:722-729.

[31] Ryu S, Nguyen DC, Ha NY, et al. Light intensity-dependent variation in defect contributions to charge transport and recombination in a planar MAPbI₃ perovskite solar cell. Sci Rep. 2019;9(1):19846.

[32] Jain A, Kapoor A. Exact analytical solutions of the parameters of real solar cells using Lambert W-function. Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells. 2004;81(2):269-277.

[33] Glowienka D, Galagan Y. Light intensity analysis of photovoltaic parameters for perovskite solar cells. Adv Mater. 2022;34(2):2105920.

[34] Proctor CM, Nguyen T-Q. Effect of leakage current and shunt resistance on the light intensity dependence of organic solar cells. Appl Phys Lett. 2015;106(8):083301.

[35] Chen P-W, Hsiao P-W, Chen H-J, et al. On the mechanism of carrier recombination in downsized blue micro-LEDs. Sci Rep. 2021;11(1):22788.

[36] Fang Z, He H, Gan L, Li J, Ye Z. Understanding the role of lithium doping in reducing nonradiative loss in lead halide perovskites. Adv Sci. 2018;5(12):1800736.

[37] Lee MM, Teuscher J, Miyasaka T, Murakami TN, Snaith HJ. Efficient hybrid solar cells based on meso-superstructured organometal halide perovskites. Science. 2012;338(6107):643-647.

[38] Yang D, Yang R, Wang K, et al. High efficiency planar-type perovskite solar cells with negligible hysteresis using EDTA-complexed SnO₂. Nat Commun. 2018;9(1):3239.

[39] You J, Guo F, Qiu S, et al. The fabrication of homogeneous perovskite films on non-wetting interfaces enabled by physical modification. J Energy Chem. 2019;38:192-198.

[40] Tan CS, Hou Y, Saidaminov MI, et al. Heterogeneous supersaturation in mixed perovskites. Adv Sci. 2020;7(7):1903166.

[41] Li W, Rothmann MU, Zhu Y, et al. The critical role of composition-dependent intragrain planar defects in the performance of MA_1–x FA_xPbI₃ perovskite solar cells. Nat Energy. 2021;6(6):624-632.

[42] Luo C, Zheng G, Gao F, et al. Facet orientation tailoring via 2D-seed-induced growth enables highly efficient and stable perovskite solar cells. Joule. 2022;6(1):240-257.

[43] Sun R, Tian Q, Li M, et al. Over 24% efficient poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF)-coordinated perovskite solar cells with a photovoltage up to 1.22 V. Adv Func Mater. 2023;33(6):2210071.

[44] Subedi B, Li C, Chen C, et al. Urbach energy and open-circuit voltage deficit for mixed anion–cation perovskite solar cells. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2022;14(6):7796-7804.

[45] Han L, Koide N, Chiba Y, Islam A, Mitate T. Modeling of an equivalent circuit for dye-sensitized solar cells: improvement of efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells by reducing internal resistance. C R Chim. 2006;9(5–6):645-651.

[46] Bi Z, Zhang S, Thandapani M, et al. High shunt resistance SnO₂-PbO electron transport layer for perovskite solar cells used in low lighting applications. Adv Sustain Syst. 2021;5(11):2100120.

[47] Kakinuma H, Akiyama M. Broad photoluminescence band in undoped Al_xGa_1−xAs grown by organometallic vapor phase epitaxy. J Appl Phys. 1997;81(11):7533-7539.

[48] Wang H, Ji Z, Qu S, et al. Influence of excitation power and temperature on photoluminescence in InGaN/GaN multiple quantum wells. Opt Express. 2012;20(4):3932-3940.

[49] Campanari V, Martelli F, Agresti A, et al. Reevaluation of photoluminescence intensity as an indicator of efficiency in perovskite solar cells. Sol RRL. 2022;6(8):2200049.

[50] Im J-H, Jang I-H, Pellet N, Grätzel M, Park N-G. Growth of CH₃NH₃PbI₃ cuboids with controlled size for high-efficiency perovskite solar cells. Nat Nanotechnol. 2014;9(11):927-932.

[51] Lee Y-S, Kwon S-N, Na S-I, Kim D, Kim S-W. Thermally and air stable perovskite solar cells with a hole transporting PTAA/NiO bilayer. Appl Sci. 2022;12(24):12888.

[52] Kang Y-J, Kwon S-N, Cho S-P, et al. Antisolvent additive engineering containing dual-function additive for triple-cation p–i–n perovskite solar cells with over 20% PCE. ACS Energy Lett. 2020;5(8):2535-2545.

[53] Wang ZS, Ebadi F, Carlsen B, Choy WC, Tress W. Transient photovoltage measurements on perovskite solar cells with varied defect concentrations and inhomogeneous recombination rates. Small Methods. 2020;4(9):2000290.

[54] Palomares E, Montcada NF, Méndez M, Jiménez-López J, Yang W, Boschloo G. Chapter 7–Photovoltage/photocurrent transient techniques. In: Pazoki M, Hagfeldt A, Edvinsson T, eds. Characterization Techniques for Perovskite Solar Cell Materials. Elsevier; 2020: 161-180.

[55] Zhao J, Zhang Y, Zhao X, et al. Band alignment strategy for printable triple mesoscopic perovskite solar cells with enhanced photovoltage. ACS Appl Energy Mater. 2019;2(3):2034-2042.

[56] Kar A, Kundu S, Patra A. Surface defect-related luminescence properties of SnO₂ nanorods and nanoparticles. J Phys Chem C. 2011;115(1):118-124.

[57] Porte Y, Maller R, Faber H, AlShareef HN, Anthopoulos TD, McLachlan MA. Exploring and controlling intrinsic defect formation in SnO₂ thin films. J Mater Chem C. 2016;4(4):758-765.

[58] Jiang J, Zou X, Lv Y, et al. Rational design of Al₂O₃/2D perovskite heterostructure dielectric for high performance MoS₂ phototransistors. Nat Commun. 2020;11(1):4266.

[59] De Wolf S, Holovsky J, Moon S-J, et al. Organometallic halide perovskites: sharp optical absorption edge and its relation to photovoltaic performance. J Phys Chem Lett. 2014;5(6):1035-1039.

[60] Chen W, Wu Y, Liu J, et al. Hybrid interfacial layer leads to solid performance improvement of inverted perovskite solar cells. Energ Environ Sci. 2015;8(2):629-640.

[61] Cheng H, Feng Y, Fu Y, Zheng Y, Shao Y, Bai Y. Understanding and minimizing non-radiative recombination losses in perovskite light-emitting diodes. J Mater Chem C. 2022;10(37):13590-13610.

[62] Guarnera S, Abate A, Zhang W, et al. Improving the long-term stability of perovskite solar cells with a porous Al₂O₃ buffer layer. J Phys Chem Lett. 2015;6(3):432-437.

[63] Dagar J, Castro-Hermosa S, Lucarelli G, Cacialli F, Brown TM. Highly efficient perovskite solar cells for light harvesting under indoor illumination via solution processed SnO₂/MgO composite electron transport layers. Nano Energy. 2018;49:290-299.

[64] Lee HKH, Barbé J, Meroni SM, et al. Outstanding indoor performance of perovskite photovoltaic cells–effect of device architectures and interlayers. Sol RRL. 2019;3(1):1800207.

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

2024 2024 The Authors. EcoMat published by The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd.