Researchers from the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay and Germany's Helmholtz Young Investigator Group FRONTRUNNER IEK5-Photovoltaik have designed an inverted perovskite solar device that uses a self-assembled monolayer to suppress nonradiative recombination at the interface between the perovskite absorber and the hole transport layer. The team reported high efficiency for the cell and say it was also able to retain the initial efficiency rating for 3,000 h.

The inverted perovskite solar cell was based on a hole transport layer (HTL) made of a phosphonic acid called methyl-substituted carbazole (Me-4PACz).

Researchers from Princeton University and the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) have connected silicon solar cells with perovskite ones in a tandem solar cell to not only boost overall efficiency, but also to strengthen stability. The results show that the connection protects the frail perovskite solar cell from voltage-induced breakdown while attaining greater efficiencies than either cell can achieve on its own.

The team demonstrated that the tested perovskite/silicon tandem devices are considerably more resilient against reverse bias compared with perovskite single-junction devices. The origin of such improved stability stems from the low reverse-bias diode current of the silicon subcell. This translates to dropping most of the voltage over the silicon subcell, where such a favorable voltage distribution protects the perovskite subcell from reverse-bias-induced degradation.

Researchers from Linköping University in Sweden and Universidad de Concepción in Chile recently designed a new type of random number generator for encryption, based on Perovskiye LEDs. The new technology could make digital information exchange safer, cheaper and more environmentally friendly and even pave the way for a new type of quantum communication.

To encrypt information, a random number generator is used, which can either be a computer program or the hardware itself. The random number generator provides keys that are used to both encrypt and unlock the information at the receiving end. Different types of random number generators provide different levels of randomness and thus security. Hardware is the safer option as randomness is controlled by physical processes. And the hardware method that provides the best randomness is based on quantum phenomena – what researchers call the Quantum Random Number Generator, QRNG.

Graphitic materials supplier First Graphene has announced an R&D collaboration with Greatcell Energy, trading as Halocell Energy, and the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) to commercialize perovskite solar cell fabrication. The project has received a Cooperative Research Centers Project (CRC-P) grant worth over AUD$2 million (around $USD1,300,000).

The research and development project is intended to commercialize ultra-low-cost, flexible perovskite solar cell fabrication using Halocell’s roll-to-roll production process at the company’s Wagga Wagga plant, First Graphene said in an announcement. Through the project, First Graphene plans to develop cost-effective graphene-based electrode replacements for high-cost conductor materials, such as gold and silver, used in cell manufacturing.

U.S-based retail solar brand Grape Solar has announced that it will be going into the perovskite PV R&D field, as it appointed Dr. Leon Dong as its head of the newly formed Solar Technology Research Center (STRC) in Eugene, Oregon.  

"This is a historical moment for us. Solar technology has improved significantly in the last decade, from efficiency and cost point of view, however, little has changed in terms of its form factor. The market demands for more flexible, lightweight, even more colorful solar products. We envision a future that would bring these kinds of technology to live in the next few years as the industry advances, and Grape Solar wants to excel in bringing new and improved technology products to our customers by making them in the United States. To achieve this goal, we need many young talents. Leon possesses the scientist mindset in the purest sense, which is rare to find these days." Commented Ocean Yuan, CEO of Grape Solar.

Researchers from Duke University, Purdue University,  Yale University, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Westlake University and Huazhong University of Science and Technology have demonstrated that by limiting the arrangement of multiple inorganic and organic layers within crystals using a novel technique, they can regulate the energy levels of electrons and holes (positive charge carriers) within perovskites.

This tuning capability affects the materials’ optoelectronic properties and capacity to emit light of specific energies, as illustrated by their ability to function as a laser source.

Researchers from Japan's Tokyo Institute of Technology, University of Oxford in the UK and Colorado State University in the U.S have shown that α-FAPbI₃, a promising solar cell material with a cubic perovskite structure that is metastable at room temperature, can be stabilized by introducing a pseudo-halide ion like thiocyanate (SCN^–) into its structure. The recent findings provide new insights into the stabilization of the α-phase via grain boundary and pseudo-halide engineering.

A material with good photophysical properties that has recently gained momentum is α-formamidinium lead iodide or α-FAPbI₃ (where FA⁺ = CH(NH₂)₂⁺), a crystalline solid with a cubic perovskite structure. Solar cells made of α-FAPbI₃ exhibit a remarkable 25.8% conversion efficiency and an energy gap of 1.48 eV. Unfortunately, α-FAPbI₃ is metastable at room temperature and undergoes a phase transition to δ-FAPbI₃ when triggered by water or light. The energy gap of δ-FAPbI₃ is much larger than the ideal value for solar cell applications, making the preservation of the α-phase crucial for practical purposes. To overcome this problem, the team of researchers, led by Associate Professor Takafumi Yamamoto from Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech), has recently presented a new strategy for stabilizing α-FAPbI₃.

According to reports, Panasonic is planning to sell windows made of “power-generating glass”, with perovskite solar cells integrated into transparent panes, to deliver power for homes. The module reportedly has a conversion efficacy of 17.9%, which is said to be the second highest worldwide for a perovskite cell larger than 800 sq. centimeters, ( after China’s UtmoLight - 18.6%).

Panasonic has been developing the cells since 2014 but only recently completed a test project, which consisted of installing the innovative glass on the balcony of a model home in its smart-town project in Kanagawa prefecture.

UNSW Sydney has received more than AUD$6 million (around USD$3,850,000) in the Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Early Career Research Awards (DECRA) round for 2024. Among the recipients are two perovskite-oriented projects.

The Australian Research Council (ARC) is supporting 200 new early career research projects with more than $86 million in funding for this 2024 round. Fourteen of the 200 projects have been awarded to early career researchers at UNSW.

Japanese electronics giant, Toshiba, has reportedly achieved a power conversion of 16.6% for a 703cm² polymer film-based perovskite solar module.

Toshiba representatives were quoted saying that the Company has provided large film-based perovskite PV module as experimental materials for demonstrations, probably referring to a project conducted at the Aobadai station in Yokohama that includes analyzing indoor performance.