Hojjatollah Sarvari

Interface engineering of high efficiency perovskite solar cells based on ZnO nanorods using atomic layer deposition

Despite the considerably improved efficiency of inorganic–organic metal hybrid perovskite solar cells (PSCs), electron transport is still a challenging issue. In this paper, we report the use of ZnO nanorods prepared by hydrothermal self-assembly as the electron transport layer in perovskite solar cells. The efficiency of the perovskite solar cells is significantly enhanced by passivating the interfacial defects via atomic layer deposition of Al2O3 monolayers on the ZnO nanorods. By employing the Al2O3 monolayers, the average power conversion efficiency of methylammonium lead iodide PSCs was increased from 10.33% to 15.06%, and the highest efficiency obtained was 16.08%. We suggest that the passivation of defects using the atomic layer deposition of monolayers might provide a new pathway for the improvement of all types of PSCs..

Solvent annealing of PbI2 for the high-quality crystallization of perovskite films for solar cells with efficiencies exceeding 18%

While most work carried out to date has focused on the solvent annealing of perovskite, in the present work, we focused on the solvent annealing of lead iodide. Based on the two-step spin-coating method, we designed a screening method to search for an effective solvent annealing process for PbI2. PbI2 films were annealed in diverse solvent atmospheres, including DMF, DMSO, acetone, and isopropanol (IPA). We found that the solvent annealing of PbI2 in the DMF, acetone, and IPA atmospheres resulted in dense PbI2 films, which impeded the complete conversion of PbI2 to CH3NH3PbI3. Surprisingly, employing the DMSO solvent annealing process for PbI2 led to porous PbI2, which facilitated the complete conversion of PbI2 to perovskite with larger grain sizes. Solar cells fabricated using the DMSO solvent annealing process exhibited the best efficiency of 18.5%, with a fill factor of 76.5%. This unique solvent annealing method presents a new way of controlling the perovskite film quality for highly efficient solar cells.

Enhanced efficiency and environmental stability of planar perovskite solar cells by suppressing photocatalytic decomposition

The environmental instability of perovskite solar cells caused by the ultraviolet photocatalytic effect of metal oxide layers is a critical issue that must be solved. In this paper, we report improved environmental stability of ZnO film-based planar heterojunction perovskite solar cells, by suppressing photocatalytic activities induced by the ZnO electron transfer layer. The photovoltaic performance and stability in an ambient environment under continuous illumination are effectively improved by applying an aluminum oxide interlayer on the ZnO film to suppress the photocatalytic degradation of perovskites. The highest efficiency of solar cells has increased from 14.62% to 17.17%, and after 250 h of continuous exposure under full spectrum simulated sunlight in air, the efficiency remains as high as 15.03%. The results suggest that effective suppression of photocatalytic degradation of perovskites with a modified electron transfer layer is a new solution to improve the long-term environmental stability of perovskite solar cells.

Enhanced Performance of Planar Perovskite Solar Cells Using Low-Temperature Solution-Processed Al-Doped SnO2 as Electron Transport Layers

Lead halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) appear to be the ideal future candidate for photovoltaic applications owing to the rapid development in recent years. The electron transport layers (ETLs) prepared by low-temperature process are essential for widespread implementation and large-scale commercialization of PSCs. Here, we report an effective approach for producing planar PSCs with Al3+ doped SnO2 ETLs prepared by using a low-temperature solution-processed method. The Al dopant in SnO2 enhanced the charge transport behavior of planar PSCs and increased the current density of the devices, compared with the undoped SnO2 ETLs. Moreover, the enhanced electrical property also improved the fill factors (FF) and power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the solar cells. This study has indicated that the low-temperature solution-processed Al-SnO2 is a promising ETL for commercialization of planar PSCs.

Comprehensive study of the two-step solution processes in ambient air for lead iodide perovskite solar cells

Organic-inorganic lead halide perovskite solar cells have attracted a great deal of interest because of potential low cost and high efficiency. However, in most publications, solar cells were fabricated in a highly controlled environment (glove boxes). Only a few papers reported fabrication of solar cells in air with the maximum efficiency of ~15%. We carried out comprehensive study of the two-step solution process parameters for fabrication of perovskite solar cells in ambient air including PbI2 spin coating speed, mesoporous TiO2 spin coating speed, hole transport material (HTM) spin coating speed, and HTM exposure to air etc. We found that the higher spin speed of PbI2 is critical for high-quality PbI2 film formation. The HTM exposure to air is also important to fabricate solar cells with larger current density and better fill factors.

Analyses of Short Channel Effects of Single-Gate and Double-Gate Graphene Nanoribbon Field Effect Transistors

Short channel effects of single-gate and double-gate graphene nanoribbon field effect transistors (GNRFETs) are studied based on the atomistic orbital model for the Hamiltonian of graphene nanoribbon using the nonequilibrium Green’s function formalism. A tight-binding Hamiltonian with an atomistic orbital basis set is used to describe the atomistic details in the channel of the GNRFETs. We have investigated the vital short channel effect parameters such as and , the threshold voltage, the subthreshold swing, and the drain induced barrier lowering versus the channel length and oxide thickness of the GNRFETs in detail. The gate capacitance and the transconductance of both devices are also computed in order to calculate the intrinsic cut-off frequency and switching delay of GNRFETs. Furthermore, the effects of doping of the channel on the threshold voltage and the frequency response of the double-gate GNRFET are discussed. We have shown that the single-gate GNRFET suffers more from short channel effects if compared with those of the double-gate structure; however, both devices have nearly the same cut-off frequency in the range of terahertz. This work provides a collection of data comparing different features of short channel effects of the single gate with those of the double gate GNRFETs. The results give a very good insight into the devices and are very useful for their digital applications.

Preparation and evaluation of perovskite solar cells in the absolute atmospheric environment

Recently solid state hybrid organometal halide perovskite solar cells have become the research hotspot. We fabricated perovskite solar cells by a simple two-step method completely in the regular ambient condition without a glove box, and all materials were just stored in ambient air. The cross-section SEM image of the perovskite solar cells exhibits a well-defined layer-by-layer structure with clear interfaces. XRD pattern shows main diffraction peaks centred at 14.2° (110) and 28.5° (220), which can be assigned to the CH3NH3PbI3 phase, suggesting a crystal structure, and the peak centred at 12.7° is attributed to PbI2. Our best Jsc is 19.2 mA/cm2, the best Voc is 1.0 V, the best FF is 0.65, and the best PCE is 10.2%.