Modeling of a Sn-Based HTM-Free Perovskite Solar Cell Using a One-Dimensional Solar Cell Capacitance Simulator Tool

Abstract

Tin (Sn)-based perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have received increasing attention in the domain of photovoltaics due to their environmentally friendly nature. In this paper, numerical modeling and simulation of hole transport material (HTM)-free PSC based on methyl ammonium tin triiodide (CH₃NH₃SnI₃) was performed using a one-dimensional solar cell capacitance simulator (SCAPS-1D) software. The effect of perovskite thickness, interface defect density, temperature, and electron transport material (ETM) on the photovoltaic performance of the device was explored. Prior to optimization, the device demonstrated a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 8.35%, fill factor (FF) of 51.93%, short-circuit current density (J _sc) of 26.36 mA/cm², and open circuit voltage (V _oc) of 0.610 V. Changing the above parameters individually while keeping others constant, the obtained optimal absorber thickness was 1.0 μm, the interface defect density was 10¹⁰ cm^–2, the temperature was 290 K, and the TiO₂ thickness was 0.01 μm. On simulating with the optimized data, the final device gave a PCE of 11.03%, FF of 50.78%, J _sc of 29.93 mA/cm², and V _oc of 0.726 V. Comparing the optimized and unoptimized metric parameters, an improvement of ~ 32.10% in PCE, ~ 13.41% in J _sc, and ~ 19.02% in V _oc were obtained. Therefore, the results of this study are encouraging and can pave the path for developing highly efficient PSCs that are cost-effective, eco-friendly, and comparable to state-of-the-art.

Keywords

Perovskite solar cells / Sn-based perovskite absorber / TiO₂ / Defect density / Temperature / HTM-free

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