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Electronics
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Materials and Properties for Solar Cell Application
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Materials and Properties for Solar Cell Application

A special issue of Electronics (ISSN 2079-9292). This special issue belongs to the section "Electronic Materials, Devices and Applications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 15 November 2025 | Viewed by 1423

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Manoj Jamarkattel

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Physics and Astronomy and Wright Center for Photovoltaics Innovation and Commercialization, The University of Toledo, 2600 Dorr Street, Toledo, OH 43606 USA
Interests: semiconductor device physics; thin film fabrication; data analysis; characterization

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The increasing world population has led to a growing demand for consumer goods and energy. The main sources of energy, such as carbon-emitting fossil fuels, have contributed to global warming and climate change. To mitigate these effects, renewable energies, such as solar cells (photovoltaic cells), are increasingly being considered as an alternative energy source. These solar cells play a crucial role in generating clean and renewable energy by converting sunlight into electrical energy. This Special Issue specifically focuses on the fabrication and characterization of various materials for different types of solar cells including Si, Perovskites, III-V, CdTe, CIS, CIGS, Kesterite solar cells, organic photovoltaics, dye-sensitized solar cells, and other chalcogenide-based solar cells. Additionally, topics of interest include emerging contacts, buffers, transparent conducting oxides, and wide band gap semiconductors.

Dr. Manoj Jamarkattel
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Electronics is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • materials
  • solar cells
  • characterization
  • contacts
  • buffers
  • passivation
  • semiconductor

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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21 pages, 4255 KiB  
Article
Controlling Charge Generation in Organic Photovoltaic Ternary Blends: How Trace Ternary Additives Determine Mechanism
by Nathan A. Cooling, Krishna Feron, Timothy W. Jones, Warwick J. Belcher and Paul C. Dastoor
Electronics 2025, 14(8), 1655; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics14081655 - 19 Apr 2025
Viewed by 181
Abstract
A series of modified tetraphenylporphyrins varying only in the electron-donating or electron-withdrawing character of the substituents in the para-phenyl position have been blended into the active layer of MEH-PPV:PCBM bulk heterojunction solar cells. Increasing the electron-withdrawing ability of the substituents, as quantified [...] Read more.
A series of modified tetraphenylporphyrins varying only in the electron-donating or electron-withdrawing character of the substituents in the para-phenyl position have been blended into the active layer of MEH-PPV:PCBM bulk heterojunction solar cells. Increasing the electron-withdrawing ability of the substituents, as quantified by the Hammett constant, systematically alters the device efficiency of ternary poly[2-methoxy-5-(2′-ethylhexyloxy)-1,4-phenylenevinylene]:porphyrin:[6,6]-phenylC61-butyric acid methyl ester (MEH-PPV:porphyrin:PCBM) bulk heterojunction organic solar cells through alteration of the HOMO/LUMO levels and, thereby, the open-circuit voltage of the cell. We show that the porphyrin concentrates at the MEH-PPV:PCBM interface in these blends and that the devices operate via a cascade mechanism when the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) of the porphyrin is higher in energy that that of MEH-PPV, but via a parallel/alloy device mechanism, when the HOMO of the porphyrin is lower in energy than that of MEH-PPV. As such, this work highlights how the energetics of the ternary component can determine device performance by switching between charge generation models simply by altering the electron-withdrawing character of the porphyrin ternary additive. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Materials and Properties for Solar Cell Application)
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14 pages, 4047 KiB  
Article
Electrical Impedance Spectroscopy: A Complementary Approach Differentiating PID Mechanisms in Photovoltaics
by A. El-Tayeb, Fang Li, Akash Kumar and Govindasamy Tamizhmani
Electronics 2025, 14(5), 1021; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics14051021 - 4 Mar 2025
Viewed by 598
Abstract
Potential-induced degradation (PID) presents a critical reliability issue for solar photovoltaic (PV) modules, with three primary types identified in the literature, namely, PIDs (shunting type), PIDp (polarization type), and PIDc (corrosion type). Electrochemical/electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) is a highly effective [...] Read more.
Potential-induced degradation (PID) presents a critical reliability issue for solar photovoltaic (PV) modules, with three primary types identified in the literature, namely, PIDs (shunting type), PIDp (polarization type), and PIDc (corrosion type). Electrochemical/electrical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) is a highly effective but underutilized technique for differentiating between these PID mechanisms. When used alongside conventional I–V measurements (e.g., Isc, Voc, and FF), EIS offers direct insights into parameters such as Rs, Rp, and Cp, making it a valuable tool for PID type differentiation. In this study, two four-cell glass–glass modules were investigated using p-base PERC monofacial cells with EVA and POE encapsulants. Results indicate that Voc and FF remained nearly unchanged under +1000 V stress for both EVA and POE modules, suggesting a minimal impact of PID stress on these parameters. However, Isc was reduced by approximately 8.5% in the EVA module and 10% in the POE module. For the POE module, surface recombination (PIDp) is likely responsible for the Isc loss, as Rs, Rp, and Cp showed no significant variation. Conversely, in the EVA module, the combined effects of surface recombination and junction recombination (PIDjr) are the probable cause of the Isc loss, as evidenced by remarkable changes in Rp and Cp. The observed decrease in Rp for the EVA module is attributed to reduced dynamic diode resistance rather than ohmic shunt resistance. This reduction is linked to recombination currents induced by junction trap centers, formed by the positive voltage PID stress in the encapsulant, which contains trace amounts of oxidizable species such as CH3COOH and/or H2O. The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of PID stress on the electrical characteristics of glass–glass PV modules with different encapsulants, utilizing a combined EIS and I–V approach to distinguish between PID mechanisms. The findings highlight the critical role of the encapsulant type in determining PID susceptibility, with the EVA module exhibiting significant degradation linked to junction recombination losses. These insights underscore the necessity of optimizing encapsulant materials to enhance PV module durability and reliability in real-world applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Materials and Properties for Solar Cell Application)
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Review

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18 pages, 2863 KiB  
Review
Recent Developments of Ruthenium Complexes for Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells
by Alessia Colombo, Claudia Dragonetti, Francesco Fagnani and Dominique Roberto
Electronics 2025, 14(8), 1639; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics14081639 - 18 Apr 2025
Viewed by 278
Abstract
Almost forty years ago, dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) appeared as a promising route for harnessing the energy of the sun and for converting it into electricity. In the following years, a huge number of studies have been dedicated to increase the global photovoltaic [...] Read more.
Almost forty years ago, dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) appeared as a promising route for harnessing the energy of the sun and for converting it into electricity. In the following years, a huge number of studies have been dedicated to increase the global photovoltaic efficiencies and stability of DSSCs. Thiocyanate ruthenium complexes bearing chelating nitrogen donor ligands turned out to be among the best performing photosensitizers. In the last 15 years, a lot of work has also been dedicated to the preparation of efficient thiocyanate-free Ru dyes. In this review, these two families of ruthenium(II) complexes are presented: (a) dyes presenting thiocyanate ligands and (b) thiocyanate-free dyes. The coverage, mainly from 2021, is not exhaustive, but exemplifies the most recent design approaches and photovoltaic properties of these two classes of Ru(II) photosensitizers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Materials and Properties for Solar Cell Application)
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