Researchers from Westlake University have made a significant breakthrough in the field of flexible tandem solar cells.
Source: Science and Technology Daily
Researchers from Westlake University have made a significant breakthrough in the field of flexible tandem solar cells. Led by Wang Rui at the university’s Future Industries Research Center, the team successfully stacked perovskite and copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) to create a solar cell with an impressive photoelectric conversion efficiency of 23.4%. The results were recently published in the journal Nature Photonics.
Wang Rui explained, “If a single-junction perovskite solar cell is like a single-layer cake, then a tandem solar cell is more like a multi-layer cake.” Each semiconductor layer in a tandem cell captures specific wavelengths of sunlight, allowing it to absorb a broader spectrum of solar energy than a single-layer cell. This leads to a more efficient conversion of sunlight into electricity, surpassing the efficiency limits of single-junction solar cells.
The process of creating tandem solar cells is akin to making a cake in the microscopic world—it requires great precision. The “cake” in this case has 15 layers, and each layer must meet strict standards for thickness and uniformity. The research team achieved a breakthrough by optimizing the fabrication process of the perovskite layer and other components, leading to rapid improvements in the efficiency of flexible perovskite/CIGS tandem solar cells. “These flexible, lightweight tandem solar cells are as thin as a human hair. They hold significant potential for applications in construction, automobiles, aircraft, and wearable flexible devices,” Wang Rui added.