Flexible Perovskite Solar Cells for Indoor Applications

Francesca De Rossi^a

^aCHOSE- Centre for Hybrid and Organic Solar Energy, Department of Electronics Engineering, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, Rome, Via Giacomo Peroni, Roma, Italy

Materials for Sustainable Development Conference (MATSUS)
Proceedings of MATSUS Spring 2025 Conference (MATSUSSpring25)

From halide perovskites to perovskite-inspired materials –Synthesis and Applications - #PeroMat

Sevilla, Spain, 2025 March 3rd - 7th

Organizers: Raquel Galian, Thomas Stergiopoulos and Paola Vivo

Invited Speaker, Francesca De Rossi, presentation 113
DOI: https://doi.org/10.29363/nanoge.matsusspring.2025.113
Publication date: 16th December 2024

Several photovoltaic technologies have been investigated so far for indoor applications: hydrogenated amorphous silicon, which reached a maximum power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 21% at 1000 lux [1], Dye Sensitized Solar Cells (DSC), which achieved a record of above 30% [2], organic photovoltaics (OPV), that reached a maximum efficiency of above 30% [3], and lead halide perovskites (PSC) that have recently led to an outstanding indoor PCE of 40.1% [4].

When moving to flexible substrates, that are very attractive for the low cost manufacturing, the easy integration and the possibility to achieve high power-to-weight ratio [5], the overall efficiency of the devices drops down to about 12% for DSC [6], to about 33% in the case of OPV [7] and to 32.5% for PSC [8].

In this talk, we will focus on and explore the application of flexible perovskite solar cells for indoor light harvesting, spanning from photocapacitors [9] to possible strategies to increase the performance, e.g. tandem configuration with other PV technologies [10], from more sustainable materials (charge transport layers, top electrodes, solvents, etc) [11] to large area deposition techniques with reduced material wastage and energy consumption [12].

References:

[1] Reich, NH V., W. G. J. H. M. Van Sark, and W. C. Turkenburg. "Charge yield potential of indoor-operated solar cells incorporated into Product Integrated Photovoltaic (PIPV)." Renewable Energy 36.2 (2011): 642-647.

[2] Ren, Y., Zhang, D., Suo, J., Cao, Y., Eickemeyer, F. T., Vlachopoulos, N., ... & Grätzel, M. (2023). Hydroxamic acid pre-adsorption raises the efficiency of cosensitized solar cells. Nature, 613(7942), 60-65.

[3] Lee, C., Lee, J. H., Lee, H. H., Nam, M., & Ko, D. H. (2022). Over 30% efficient indoor organic photovoltaics enabled by morphological modification using two compatible non‐fullerene acceptors. Advanced Energy Materials, 12(22), 2200275.

[4] Dong, C., Li, X. M., Ma, C., Yang, W. F., Cao, J. J., Igbari, F., ... & Liao, L. S. (2021). Lycopene‐based bionic membrane for stable perovskite photovoltaics. Advanced Functional Materials, 31(25), 2011242.

[5] Kaltenbrunner, M., Adam, G., Głowacki, E. D., Drack, M., Schwödiauer, R., Leonat, L., ... & Bauer, S. (2015). Flexible high power-per-weight perovskite solar cells with chromium oxide–metal contacts for improved stability in air. Nature materials, 14(10), 1032-1039.

[6] Tsai, M. C., Wang, C. L., Chang, C. W., Hsu, C. W., Hsiao, Y. H., Liu, C. L., ... & Lin, C. Y. (2018). A large, ultra-black, efficient and cost-effective dye-sensitized solar module approaching 12% overall efficiency under 1000 lux indoor light. Journal of Materials Chemistry A, 6(5), 1995-2003.

[7] Kim, T. H., Chung, J. J., Saeed, M. A., Lee, S. Y., & Shim, J. W. (2023). High-efficiency (over 33%) indoor organic photovoltaics with band-aligned and defect-suppressed interlayers. Applied Surface Science, 610, 155558.

[8] Skafi, Z., Xu, J., Mottaghitalab, V., Mivehi, L., Taheri, B., Jafarzadeh, F., ... & Brown, T. M. (2023). Highly Efficient Flexible Perovskite Solar Cells on Polyethylene Terephthalate Films via Dual Halide and Low‐Dimensional Interface Engineering for Indoor Photovoltaics. Solar RRL, 7(20), 2300324.

[9] Lomeri, H. J., Patra, A., Polino, G., Ali, J., Jafarzadeh, F., Rout, C. S., ... & Brunetti, F. (2024). Integration of a Paper‐Based Supercapacitor and Flexible Perovskite Mini‐Module: Toward Self‐Powered Portable and Wearable Electronics. Advanced Functional Materials, 2313267.

[10] Chakraborty, A., Lucarelli, G., Xu, J., Skafi, Z., Castro-Hermosa, S., Kaveramma, A. B., ... & Brown, T. M. (2024). Photovoltaics for indoor energy harvesting. Nano Energy, 109932.

[11] Alencar, D. et al., Proceedings of MATSUS Spring 2024 Conference (MATSUS24)

[12] Jafarzadeh, F., Castriotta, L. A., De Rossi, F., Ali, J., Di Giacomo, F., Di Carlo, A., ... & Brunetti, F. (2023). All-blade-coated flexible perovskite solar cells & modules processed in air from a sustainable dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)-based solvent system. Sustainable Energy & Fuels, 7(9), 2219-2228.

Acknowledgements:

This research was funded by the Clean Energy Transition Partnership under the 2022 CET Partnership joint call for research proposal, cofunded by the European Commission (GA No. 101069750) and with the funding organizations detailed on https://cetpartnership.eu/funding-agencies-and-call-modules.

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