Mixed cations tin-germanium perovskite: A promising approach for enhanced solar cell applications
Mohd Saiful Adli Azizman,
Ayu Wazira Azhari,
Naimah Ibrahim,
Dewi Suriyani Che Halin,
Suhaila Sepeai,
Norasikin Ahmad Ludin,
Mohammad Nuzaihan Md Nor,
Li Ngee Ho
Affiliations
Mohd Saiful Adli Azizman
Faculty of Civil Engineering and Technology, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia; Center of Excellence for Water Research and Environmental Sustainability Growth (WAREG), Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia
Ayu Wazira Azhari
Faculty of Civil Engineering and Technology, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia; Center of Excellence for Water Research and Environmental Sustainability Growth (WAREG), Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia; Corresponding author. Faculty of Civil Engineering and Technology, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia.
Naimah Ibrahim
Faculty of Civil Engineering and Technology, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia; Center of Excellence for Water Research and Environmental Sustainability Growth (WAREG), Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia
Dewi Suriyani Che Halin
Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia; Center of Excellence for Geopolymer & Green Technology (CEGeoGTech), Universiti Malaysia Perlis, (UniMAP), 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia
Suhaila Sepeai
Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia
Norasikin Ahmad Ludin
Solar Energy Research Institute (SERI), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia
Mohammad Nuzaihan Md Nor
Institute of Nano Electronic Engineering (INEE), Universiti Malaysia Perlis (UniMAP), Kangar, Perlis, Malaysia
Li Ngee Ho
Center of Excellence for Water Research and Environmental Sustainability Growth (WAREG), Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia; Faculty of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Universiti Malaysia Perlis, 02600, Jalan Kangar-Arau, Perlis, Malaysia
Significant progress has been made over the years to improve the stability and efficiency of rapidly evolving tin-based perovskite solar cells (PSCs). One powerful approach to enhance the performance of these PSCs is through compositional engineering techniques, specifically by incorporating a mixed cation system at the A-site and B-site structure of the tin perovskite. These approaches will pave the way for unlocking the full potential of tin-based PSCs. Therefore, in this study, a theoretical investigation of mixed A-cations (FA, MA, EA, Cs) with a tin-germanium-based PSC was presented. The crystal structure distortion and optoelectronic properties were estimated. SCAPS 1-D simulations were employed to predict the photovoltaic performance of the optimized tin-germanium material using different electron transport layers (ETLs), hole transport layers (HTLs), active layer thicknesses, and cell temperatures. Our findings reveal that EA0.5Cs0.5Sn0.5Ge0.5I3 has a nearly cubic structure (t = 0.99) and a theoretical bandgap within the maximum Shockley-Queisser limit (1.34 eV). The overall cell performance is also improved by optimizing the perovskite layer thickness to 1200 nm, and it exhibits remarkable stability as the temperature increases. The short-circuit current density (Jsc) remains consistent around 33.7 mA/cm2, and the open-circuit voltage (Voc) is well-maintained above 1 V by utilizing FTO as the conductive layer, ZnO as the ETL, Cu2O as the HTL, and Au as the metal back contact. This configuration also achieves a high fill factor ranging from 87 % to 88 %, with the highest power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 31.49 % at 293 K. This research contributes to the advancement of tin-germanium perovskite materials for a wide range of optoelectronic applications.
