Proceedings of International Conference on Hybrid and Organic Photovoltaics (HOPV24)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29363/nanoge.hopv.2024.207
Publication date: 6th February 2024
Hybrid lead halide perovskite materials exhibit promising potential to outperform silicon-based modules and dominate the photovoltaic market. Despite their outstanding properties, these materials suffer from several drawbacks such as stability issues and the presence of toxic Pb in their structure. Tin halide perovskite solar cells (THPSCs) have emerged as strong candidates to replace Pb-based counterparts due to their excellent optoelectronic properties and reduced toxicity. However, THPSCs still exhibit lower efficiency compared to their Pb-based counterparts, and the voltage losses remain significantly higher, surpassing 0.6 V, almost double that of the best-performing Pb-based PSCs (0.3–0.4 V).
On this basis, we designed and synthesized two novel fullerene derivatives, namely C60-1 and C60-2, functionalized with different fluorinated moieties, and incorporated them as interlayers between the perovskite and the C60 electron transport layer. The LUMO levels of C60-1 and C60-2, at -3.98 eV and -4.01 eV respectively, exhibited better alignment with the conduction band of the tin perovskite layer (-3.92 eV) compared to C60 (-4.05 eV). This enhanced alignment minimized the energy level mismatch, significantly improving the overall device performance. Consequently, the efficiency of the devices increased from 9.3% for the reference device to 10.45% and 11% for the C60-1 and C60-2 devices respectively. These results highlight the potential of functionalized fullerenes in mitigating voltage losses and improving the performance of THPSCs, paving the way for future advancements in their design and development.