Currently, silicon solar cells are widely used in practice, however problems such as the need for ultra-pure silicon and sophisticated manufacturing techniques that increase the cost of solar cells, prompt search for other materials that could be used in solar cell production. One of the most promising alternatives is perovskite solar cells (PSCs). The energy conversion efficiency of the latter has jumped from 4% to more than 24% over past ten years, while the performance of the tandem perovskite / silicon solar cell is up to 28%. PSC are also characterized by simplicity of construction and low cost. Although perovskite solar cells have achieved impressive efficiencies over the past years, this is not enough to commercialize them. One of the main obstacles is the cost of the organic semiconductors currently used for positive charge transfer and the complex multi-component doping system which, among other things, has a negative impact on the life-time of the entire device. One way to ensure good mobility and conductivity of the carriers is to use inorganic compounds. This type of molecule would solve two problems at once: reducing the complexity of the device’s production and increasing its longevity. The expected result of the project is organometallic precursors, which, due to their film and thermal properties, are suitable for forming positive charge transporting inorganic copper thiocyanate layer in PSC. This project will continue the work begun in 2018-2019. The knowledge gained during the latter project and the obtained research data on the nuances of the synthesis and the influence of the structure on the characteristics of the compounds will allow more efficient selection of components in search of the optimal combination of characteristics. By participating in this project, the young researcher will gain knowledge and practical experience in a promising area of research. The results of the project will be presented at a conference on this topic.
Project funding:
Project is funded by EU Structural Funds according to the 2014–2020 Operational Programme for the European Union Funds’ Investments priority “Development of scientific competence of researchers, other researchers, students through practical scientific activities” under Measure No. 09.3.3-LMT-K-712.
Project results:
Complex compounds, that potentially could used as CuSCN precursors, were synthesized and investigated in the study. The results obtained demonstrated that precursors with 4- (5-nonylpyridine) and tri-tert-butylphosphine ligands demonstrated appropriate solubility in organic solvents, optimum thermal destruction temperature, form good quality layers and can be used as precursors to obtain CuSCN layers during perovskite solar cell construction, successfully avoiding the use of diethyl sulfide as solvent.
Period of project implementation: 2019-10-15 - 2020-04-30
Project coordinator: Kaunas University of Technology
