SPONSORED: SOLAR
Let there be light
Perovskite solar cell technology To harness as much of the sun’s energy as possible, the materials used to fabricate solar devices must be highly transparent to visible light to maximise conversion efficiency. The one thing that sets
E
very life process on Earth is powered by the sun. It provides the energy
required to cultivate most of our food, decomposing its remains and converting it into the fuel we burn today to continue harvesting energy1
. While this may appear to be
a ‘renewable’ life cycle, nothing could be further from the truth. Fossil fuels are a finite source of energy, and our over-reliance and increased consumption has led to well-documented environmental concerns that necessitate immediate action2 The urgency to investigate
.
reliable and renewable energy sources has accelerated over the years, with an unsurprisingly large focus on solar energy. Did you know that ~739kWm-2
the Earth’s surface from the sun2
? This is precisely why
harnessing the sun’s energy and light to invent, test and apply technology in an eco- friendly manner is crucial for humanity’s advancement1
–
and solar simulation can help achieve just that.
References 1
What is solar simulation? Solar Simulation technology aims to imitate the sun for use in controlled environments. Its main purpose is to provide a means for manageable indoor testing facilities under strict laboratory environments by producing illumination that mimics natural sunlight 1
.
www.electrooptics.com | @electrooptics 2 Solar Simulation Technology G2V Optics
Turner, Daniel, et al. Recent enterprises in high-rate monolithic photo-electrochemical energy harvest and storage devices.”Current Opinion in Electrochemistry (2023): 101243.
3 Perovskite Solar Cell Technology G2V Optics 4
https://rayleighsolartech.com
The scientific instrument used to simulate sunlight is called a solar simulator. These are specifically designed to deliver intensity and spectral composition as close as possible to natural light. Sunlight is composed of
multiple wavelengths, some of which coincide with the colours we see, and others that are invisible to the naked eye: radio waves, microwaves, infrared (IR) and ultraviolet (UV) radiation1
. The amount is incident on
of sunlight striking the Earth’s surface can vary due to: variations in earth/ sun distance, scattering and absorption by the atmosphere, and different incidence angles at different locations. It is, therefore, very important to account for all these factors and implement them in design considerations to produce more efficient and reliable solar devices.
perovskites apart from other candidates such as silicon or cadmium telluride, is the incredible level of flexibility in their structure. Owing to how atoms are shared between unit cells of material, it is possible to synthesise hundreds of perovskite crystals via different component combinations. This makes it possible to stress perovskite crystals into several other configurations – which can greatly modify their physical and electronic properties. Increasing internal stress
within the crystal can prevent the formation of crystal defects, which has proven to be extremely useful in combating reduced Power Conversion Efficiency (PCE) and increasing the lifetime of solar cells3
.
This flexibility in the chemical structure of perovskite cells makes them a highly desirable platform for producing tuneable solar cells for various applications. However, it is our understanding of their chemical construction, and mature fabrication processes that enable the production of high-quality solar cells. One of the most sought-after
properties of a solar cell is its PCE. At higher PCEs, solar panels can generate more power via the photovoltaic effect while simultaneously producing less
heat. This makes improving the efficiency of solar cell technology a very hot topic in research3
. To achieve maximum
PCE, a perovskite layer needs to be accompanied by other material layers called charge transport layers (CTLs) which act as neutral semiconductive materials where charge separation can be induced. Due to the high carrier mobility in perovskite layers, the application of CTLs is sufficient to produce an E-field throughout the layer after electron-hole pair creation. Before deploying solar cells into the world, they must be thoroughly tested. It is important to validate whether they are acceptable by investigating the cell’s electronic properties and crystallinity. The most common testing method is based on a flashing technique: a solar simulator light source is pulsed between 1 and 30 ms, and responsivity data of the solar cell (I-V characteristics) is collected and compared against well-established NREL data3
.
Ajan Ramachandran PhD, an Optics Research Scientist at Rayleigh Solar Tech says: “In our perovskite testing the ability to customise the intensity and wavelength profiles, all while maintaining excellent uniformity and stability has been key in our perovskite manufacturing processes”4
. Rayleigh Solar
Tech’s mission is “to find ways to harness solar energy and make it useful unlike anything ever seen before” because they believe solar energy is the key to a more sustainable future4
.
They see a “brighter future with perovskite” and so do we – G2V Optics LED solar simulators are here to help you see the light. EO
Further information For more information on G2V optics products, please email Photonic Solutions on:
sales@photonicsolutions.co.uk
Figure 1: (a) layer order in a perovskite solar cell, (b) photovoltaic effect May 2023 Electro Optics 31
slhy/
Shutterstock.com
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