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A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 December 2019) | Viewed by 58926

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Dr. Munkhbayar Batmunkh

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Centre for Clean Environment and Energy, Environmental Futures Research Institute, Griffith University, Gold Coast, QLD 4222, Australia
Interests: nanochemistry; materials chemistry; materials science; carbon nanomaterials; graphene; carbon nanotubes; two-dimensional materials; energy; photovoltaic; perovskite solar cells; dye-sensitized solar cells; heterojunction solar cells; electrochemistry; photocatalysis; electrocatalysis
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Dear Colleagues,

There is a clear need to make energy production cheap, readily accessible, and deployable in a vast array of locations, while ensuring that its production is environmentally friendly. Solar cells, which convert sunlight into electricity, are renewable sources of energy that are sustainable and totally inexhaustible. In particular, emerging solar cells have received intense attention because these classes of solar cells, in comparison to traditional silicon solar cells, promise to be less expensive, lighter, more flexible, and portable. Despite these features, there are some challenges that restrict the possible commercialization of these technologies. Many of these challenges can be addressed with the use of nanostructured materials. Over the past years, excellent research progress has been made in this cutting-edge research area. Moreover, it is very likely that the use of nanomaterials will contribute significantly to the future development of these emerging solar technologies.

The purpose of this Special Issue is to collect state-of-the-art works on photovoltaics, in particular on the application of nanostructured materials for emerging solar cells. In addition to original research papers, comprehensive review articles highlighting recent advances that have been made in the field of emerging solar cells are most welcomed. As such, it is my great pleasure to invite you to submit contributions to this Special Issue.

Dr. Munkhbayar Batmunkh
Guest Editor

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Keywords

Photovoltaic
Emerging solar cells
Perovskite solar cells
Dye-sensitized solar cells
Organic solar cells
Quantum-dot sensitized solar cells
Excitonic solar cells
Heterojunction solar cells
Silico–carbon solar cells
Nanomaterials

Published Papers (13 papers)

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Editorial

Jump to: Research, Review

3 pages, 162 KiB

Open AccessEditorial

Advances in Emerging Solar Cells

by Munkhbayar Batmunkh

Nanomaterials 2020, 10(3), 534; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10030534 - 17 Mar 2020

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1756

Abstract

There has been a continuous increase in the world’s electricity generation and consumption over the years [...] Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

Research

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18 pages, 5368 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Elucidating the Effect of Etching Time Key-Parameter toward Optically and Electrically-Active Silicon Nanowires

by Mariem Naffeti, Pablo Aitor Postigo, Radhouane Chtourou and Mohamed Ali Zaïbi

Nanomaterials 2020, 10(3), 404; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10030404 - 25 Feb 2020

Cited by 30 | Viewed by 3437

Abstract

In this work, vertically aligned silicon nanowires (SiNWs) with relatively high crystallinity have been fabricated through a facile, reliable, and cost-effective metal assisted chemical etching method. After introducing an itemized elucidation of the fabrication process, the effect of varying etching time on morphological, structural, optical, and electrical properties of SiNWs was analysed. The NWs length increased with increasing etching time, whereas the wires filling ratio decreased. The broadband photoluminescence (PL) emission was originated from self-generated silicon nanocrystallites (SiNCs) and their size were derived through an analytical model. FTIR spectroscopy confirms that the PL deterioration for extended time is owing to the restriction of excitation volume and therefore reduction of effective light-emitting crystallites. These SiNWs are very effective in reducing the reflectance to 9–15% in comparison with Si wafer. I–V characteristics revealed that the rectifying behaviour and the diode parameters calculated from conventional thermionic emission and Cheung’s model depend on the geometry of SiNWs. We deduce that judicious control of etching time or otherwise SiNWs’ length is the key to ensure better optical and electrical properties of SiNWs. Our findings demonstrate that shorter SiNWs are much more optically and electrically active which is auspicious for the use in optoelectronic devices and solar cells applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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11 pages, 1899 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Carboxylic Acid Functionalization at the Meso-Position of the Bodipy Core and Its Influence on Photovoltaic Performance

by Filip Ambroz, Joanna L. Donnelly, Jonathan D. Wilden, Thomas J. Macdonald and Ivan P. Parkin

Nanomaterials 2019, 9(10), 1346; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9101346 - 20 Sep 2019

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3078

Abstract

Two bodipy dyes with different carboxylic acids on the meso-position of the bodipy core were prepared and used to sensitize TiO₂ photoelectrodes. On the basis of spectroscopic characterization, the photoelectrodes were used to fabricate photoelectrochemical cells (PECs) for solar light harvesting. Photovoltaic measurements showed that both bodipy dyes successfully sensitized PECs with short-circuit current densities (J_SC) two-fold higher compared to the control. The increase in generated current was attributed to the gain in spectral absorbance due to the presence of bodipy. Finally, the influence of co-sensitization of bodipy and N719 dye was also investigated and photovoltaic device performance discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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12 pages, 2572 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Solution-Processed PEDOT:PSS/MoS₂ Nanocomposites as Efficient Hole-Transporting Layers for Organic Solar Cells

by Madeshwaran Sekkarapatti Ramasamy, Ka Yeon Ryu, Ju Won Lim, Asia Bibi, Hannah Kwon, Ji-Eun Lee, Dong Ha Kim and Kyungkon Kim

Nanomaterials 2019, 9(9), 1328; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9091328 - 16 Sep 2019

Cited by 23 | Viewed by 4939

Abstract

An efficient hole-transporting layer (HTL) based on functionalized two-dimensional (2D) MoS₂-poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) composites has been developed for use in organic solar cells (OSCs). Few-layer, oleylamine-functionalized MoS₂ (FMoS₂) nanosheets were prepared via a simple and cost-effective solution-phase exfoliation method; then, they were blended into PEDOT:PSS, a conducting conjugated polymer, and the resulting hybrid film (PEDOT:PSS/FMoS₂) was tested as an HTL for poly(3-hexylthiophene):[6,6]-phenyl-C₆₁-butyric acid methyl ester (P3HT:PCBM) OSCs. The devices using this hybrid film HTL showed power conversion efficiencies up to 3.74%, which is 15.08% higher than that of the reference ones having PEDOT:PSS as HTL. Atomic force microscopy and contact angle measurements confirmed the compatibility of the PEDOT:PSS/FMoS₂ surface for active layer deposition on it. The electrical impedance spectroscopy analysis revealed that their use minimized the charge-transfer resistance of the OSCs, consequently improving their performance compared with the reference cells. Thus, the proposed fabrication of such HTLs incorporating 2D nanomaterials could be further expanded as a universal protocol for various high-performance optoelectronic devices. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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10 pages, 2948 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Dopant-Free Hole Transport Materials with a Long Alkyl Chain for Stable Perovskite Solar Cells

by Kai Wang, Haoran Chen, Tingting Niu, Shan Wang, Xiao Guo and Hong Wang

Nanomaterials 2019, 9(7), 935; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9070935 - 28 Jun 2019

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3335

Abstract

Hole transport materials are indispensable to high efficiency perovskite solar cells. Two new hole transporting materials (HTMs), named 4,4′-(9-nonyl-9H-carbazole-3,6-diyl)bis (N,N-bis(4-methoxyphenyl)aniline) (CZTPA-1) and 4,4′-(9-methyl-9H-carbazole-3,6-diyl)bis (N,N-bis(4-methoxyphenyl)aniline)(CZTPA-2), were developed by different alkyl substitution methods. The two compounds, containing a carbazole core and triphenylamine (TPA) groups with different lengths of the alkyl chain, were designed and synthesized through a two-step synthesis approach. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) was found to be affected by the length of the alkyl chain, reaching 7% for CZTPA-1 and 11% for CZTPA-2. Furthermore, the CZTPA-2 still maintained 89.7% of its original performance after 400 h. The proposed results demonstrate the effect of carbon chain substituents on the efficiency of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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13 pages, 3740 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Efficient Ni/Au Mesh Transparent Electrodes for ITO-Free Planar Perovskite Solar Cells

by Dazheng Chen, Gang Fan, Hongxiao Zhang, Long Zhou, Weidong Zhu, He Xi, Hang Dong, Shangzheng Pang, Xiaoning He, Zhenhua Lin, Jincheng Zhang, Chunfu Zhang and Yue Hao

Nanomaterials 2019, 9(7), 932; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9070932 - 28 Jun 2019

Cited by 25 | Viewed by 4547

Abstract

Indium thin oxide (ITO)-free planar perovskite solar cells (PSCs) were fabricated at a low temperature (150 °C) in this work based on the transparent electrode of photolithography processed nickel/gold (Ni/Au) mesh and the high conductivity polymer, PH1000. Ultrathin Au was introduced to increase the conductivity of metal mesh, and the optimal hexagonal Ni (30 nm)/Au (10 nm) mesh (line width of 5 μm) shows a transmittance close to 80% in the visible light region and a sheet resistance lower than 16.9 Ω/sq. The conductive polymer PH1000 not only smooths the raised surface of the metal mesh but also enhances the charge collection ability of metal mesh. The fabricated PSCs have the typical planar structure (glass/Ni-Au mesh/PH1000/PEDOT:PSS/MA_yFA_1−yPbI_xCl_3−x/PCBM/BCP/Ag) and the champion PSC (0.09 cm²) obtains a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 13.88%, negligible current hysteresis, steady current density and PCE outputs, and good process repeatability. Its photovoltaic performance and stability are comparable to the reference PSC based on the ITO electrodes (PCE = 15.70%), which demonstrates that the Ni/Au mesh transparent electrodes are a promising ITO alternative to fabricate efficient PSCs. The relatively lower performance of Ni/Au based PSC results from the relatively slower charge extraction and stronger charge recombination than the ITO based PSC. Further, we tried to fabricate the large area (1 cm²) device and achieve a PCE over 6% with negligible hysteresis and steady current density and PCE outputs. The improvements of perovskite film quality and interface modification should be an effective approach to further enhance the device performance of Ni/Au based PSCs, and the Ni/Au mesh electrode may find wider applications in PSCs and flexible devices. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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11 pages, 5771 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Improving Two-Step Prepared CH₃NH₃PbI₃ Perovskite Solar Cells by Co-Doping Potassium Halide and Water in PbI₂ Layer

by Hsuan-Ta Wu, Yu-Ting Cheng, Ching-Chich Leu, Shih-Hsiung Wu and Chuan-Feng Shih

Nanomaterials 2019, 9(5), 666; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9050666 - 27 Apr 2019

Cited by 16 | Viewed by 5716

Abstract

Incorporating additives into organic halide perovskite solar cells is the typical approach to improve power conversion efficiency. In this paper, a methyl-ammonium lead iodide (CH₃NH₃PbI₃, MAPbI₃) organic perovskite film was fabricated using a two-step sequential process on top of the poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS) hole-transporting layer. Experimentally, water and potassium halides (KCl, KBr, and KI) were incorporated into the PbI₂ precursor solution. With only 2 vol% water, the cell efficiency was effectively improved. Without water, the addition of all of the three potassium halides unanimously degraded the performance of the solar cells, although the crystallinity was improved. Co-doping with KI and water showed a pronounced improvement in crystallinity and the elimination of carrier traps, yielding a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 13.9%, which was approximately 60% higher than the pristine reference cell. The effect of metal halide and water co-doping in the PbI₂ layer on the performance of organic perovskite solar cells was studied. Raman and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopies indicated that a PbI₂-dimethylformamide-water related adduct was formed upon co-doping. Photoluminescence enhancement was observed due to the co-doping of KI and water, indicating the defect density was reduced. Finally, the co-doping process was recommended for developing high-performance organic halide perovskite solar cells. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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13 pages, 2197 KiB

Open AccessArticle

High-Dose Electron Radiation and Unexpected Room-Temperature Self-Healing of Epitaxial SiC Schottky Barrier Diodes

by Guixia Yang, Yuanlong Pang, Yuqing Yang, Jianyong Liu, Shuming Peng, Gang Chen, Ming Jiang, Xiaotao Zu, Xuan Fang, Hongbin Zhao, Liang Qiao and Haiyan Xiao

Nanomaterials 2019, 9(2), 194; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9020194 - 02 Feb 2019

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3211

Abstract

Silicon carbide (SiC) has been widely used for electronic radiation detectors and atomic battery sensors. However, the physical properties of SiC exposure to high-dose irradiation as well as its related electrical responses are not yet well understood. Meanwhile, the current research in this field are generally focused on electrical properties and defects formation, which are not suitable to explain the intrinsic response of irradiation effect since defect itself is not easy to characterize, and it is complex to determine whether it comes from the raw material or exists only upon irradiation. Therefore, a more straightforward quantification of irradiation effect is needed to establish the direct correlation between irradiation-induced current and the radiation fluence. This work reports the on-line electrical properties of 4H-SiC Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs) under high-dose electron irradiation and employs in situ noise diagnostic analysis to demonstrate the correlation of irradiation-induced defects and microscopic electronic properties. It is found that the electron beam has a strong radiation destructive effect on 4H-SiC SBDs. The on-line electron-induced current and noise information reveal a self-healing like procedure, in which the internal defects of the devices are likely to be annealed at room temperature and devices’ performance is restored to some extent. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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14 pages, 4110 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Enhanced Silver Nanowire Composite Window Electrode Protected by Large Size Graphene Oxide Sheets for Perovskite Solar Cells

by Hongye Chen, Min Li, Xiaoyan Wen, Yingping Yang, Daping He, Wallace C. H. Choy and Haifei Lu

Nanomaterials 2019, 9(2), 193; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9020193 - 02 Feb 2019

Cited by 25 | Viewed by 4860

Abstract

Despite the outstanding features of high transmittance and low sheet resistance from silver nanowire (Ag NW) based transparent electrodes, their applications in perovskite solar cells (PVSCs) as window electrodes encounter significant obstacles due to the stability issue brought by the corrosion of halogen species from perovskite layer. In this study, we used large size graphene oxide (LGO) sheets as the protective barrier for bottom Ag NW nano-network. Contributed by the LGO with average size of 60 μm, less GO sheet was necessary for forming the fully covered protective barrier with fewer cracks, which consequently improved the optical transparency and anticorrosive ability of the composite electrode compared to the one from relatively small size GO. Our experiments demonstrated the composite electrode of Ag NW/LGO. The glass substrate exhibited transmittance of 83.8% and 81.8% at 550 nm before and after partial reduction, which maintained 98.4% and 95.1% average transmittance (AVT) of the pristine Ag NW electrode. Meanwhile, we utilized the steady hot airflow to assist the fast solvent evaporation and the uniform GO film formation on Ag NW electrode. Before the application of composite electrode in organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite solar cells, the operational stability of composite electrodes from different sizes of GO with perovskite film fabricated on top were characterized under continuing external bias and light irradiation. Experimental results indicate that the Ag NW electrode protected by LGO could maintain original resistance for more than 45 h. Finally, the PVSC fabricated on Ag NW/LGO based composite electrode yielded a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 9.62%, i.e., nearly 85% of that of the reference device fabricated on the commercial indium-tin oxide (ITO) glass. Our proposed low temperature and solution processed bottom electrode with improved optical transparency and operational stability can serve as the very beginning layer of optoelectronic devices, to promote the development of low cost and large area fabrication perovskite solar cells. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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10 pages, 1503 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Improving Electron Extraction Ability and Device Stability of Perovskite Solar Cells Using a Compatible PCBM/AZO Electron Transporting Bilayer

by Hang Dong, Shangzheng Pang, Yi Zhang, Dazheng Chen, Weidong Zhu, He Xi, Jingjing Chang, Jincheng Zhang, Chunfu Zhang and Yue Hao

Nanomaterials 2018, 8(9), 720; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano8090720 - 12 Sep 2018

Cited by 36 | Viewed by 5427

Abstract

Due to the low temperature fabrication process and reduced hysteresis effect, inverted p-i-n structured perovskite solar cells (PSCs) with the PEDOT:PSS as the hole transporting layer and PCBM as the electron transporting layer have attracted considerable attention. However, the energy barrier at the interface between the PCBM layer and the metal electrode, which is due to an energy level mismatch, limits the electron extraction ability. In this work, an inorganic aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) interlayer is inserted between the PCBM layer and the metal electrode so that electrons can be collected efficiently by the electrode. It is shown that with the help of the PCBM/AZO bilayer, the power conversion efficiency of PSCs is significantly improved, with negligible hysteresis and improved device stability. The UPS measurement shows that the AZO interlayer can effectively decrease the energy offset between PCBM and the metal electrode. The steady state photoluminescence, time-resolved photoluminescence, transient photocurrent, and transient photovoltage measurements show that the PSCs with the AZO interlayer have a longer radiative carrier recombination lifetime and more efficient charge extraction efficiency. Moreover, the introduction of the AZO interlayer could protect the underlying perovskite, and thus, greatly improve device stability. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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12 pages, 2259 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Efficient CdTe Nanocrystal/TiO₂ Hetero-Junction Solar Cells with Open Circuit Voltage Breaking 0.8 V by Incorporating A Thin Layer of CdS Nanocrystal

by Xianglin Mei, Bin Wu, Xiuzhen Guo, Xiaolin Liu, Zhitao Rong, Songwei Liu, Yanru Chen, Donghuan Qin, Wei Xu, Lintao Hou and Bingchang Chen

Nanomaterials 2018, 8(8), 614; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano8080614 - 13 Aug 2018

Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3618

Abstract

Nanocrystal solar cells (NCs) allow for large scale solution processing under ambient conditions, permitting a promising approach for low-cost photovoltaic products. Although an up to 10% power conversion efficiency (PCE) has been realized with the development of device fabrication technologies, the open circuit voltage (V_oc) of CdTe NC solar cells has stagnated below 0.7 V, which is significantly lower than most CdTe thin film solar cells fabricated by vacuum technology (around 0.8 V~0.9 V). To further improve the NC solar cells’ performance, an enhancement in the V_oc towards 0.8–1.0 V is urgently required. Given the unique processing technologies and physical properties in CdTe NC, the design of an optimized band alignment and improved junction quality are important issues to obtain efficient solar cells coupled with high V_oc. In this work, an efficient method was developed to improve the performance and V_oc of solution-processed CdTe nanocrystal/TiO₂ hetero-junction solar cells. A thin layer of solution-processed CdS NC film (~5 nm) as introduced into CdTe NC/TiO₂ to construct hetero-junction solar cells with an optimized band alignment and p-n junction quality, which resulted in a low dark current density and reduced carrier recombination. As a result, devices with improved performance (5.16% compared to 2.63% for the control device) and a V_oc as high as 0.83 V were obtained; this V_oc value is a record for a solution-processed CdTe NC solar cell. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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Review

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28 pages, 7971 KiB

Open AccessReview

Nanostructured Perovskite Solar Cells

by Calum McDonald, Chengsheng Ni, Paul Maguire, Paul Connor, John T. S. Irvine, Davide Mariotti and Vladimir Svrcek

Nanomaterials 2019, 9(10), 1481; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9101481 - 18 Oct 2019

Cited by 18 | Viewed by 10069

Abstract

Over the past decade, lead halide perovskites have emerged as one of the leading photovoltaic materials due to their long carrier lifetimes, high absorption coefficients, high tolerance to defects, and facile processing methods. With a bandgap of ~1.6 eV, lead halide perovskite solar cells have achieved power conversion efficiencies in excess of 25%. Despite this, poor material stability along with lead contamination remains a significant barrier to commercialization. Recently, low-dimensional perovskites, where at least one of the structural dimensions is measured on the nanoscale, have demonstrated significantly higher stabilities, and although their power conversion efficiencies are slightly lower, these materials also open up the possibility of quantum-confinement effects such as carrier multiplication. Furthermore, both bulk perovskites and low-dimensional perovskites have been demonstrated to form hybrids with silicon nanocrystals, where numerous device architectures can be exploited to improve efficiency. In this review, we provide an overview of perovskite solar cells, and report the current progress in nanoscale perovskites, such as low-dimensional perovskites, perovskite quantum dots, and perovskite-nanocrystal hybrid solar cells. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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15 pages, 2091 KiB

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The Way to Pursue Truly High-Performance Perovskite Solar Cells

by Jia-Ren Wu, Diksha Thakur, Shou-En Chiang, Anjali Chandel, Jyh-Shyang Wang, Kuan-Cheng Chiu and Sheng Hsiung Chang

Nanomaterials 2019, 9(9), 1269; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano9091269 - 05 Sep 2019

Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3782

Abstract

The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of single-junction solar cells was theoretically predicted to be limited by the Shockley–Queisser limit due to the intrinsic potential loss of the photo-excited electrons in the light absorbing materials. Up to now, the optimized GaAs solar cell has the highest PCE of 29.1%, which is close to the theoretical limit of ~33%. To pursue the perfect photovoltaic performance, it is necessary to extend the lifetimes of the photo-excited carriers (hot electrons and hot holes) and to collect the hot carriers without potential loss. Thanks to the long-lived hot carriers in perovskite crystal materials, it is possible to completely convert the photon energy to electrical power when the hot electrons and hot holes can freely transport in the quantized energy levels of the electron transport layer and hole transport layer, respectively. In order to achieve the ideal PCE, the interactions between photo-excited carriers and phonons in perovskite solar cells has to be completely understood. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in Emerging Solar Cells)

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