Recent Perovskite News - Page 2

Researchers at Northwestern Polytechnical University, Harbin Institute of Technology and Beijing Solarverse Optoelectronic Technology have developed a molecular strategy that simultaneously boosts perovskite solar cell efficiency and protects against ultraviolet degradation. The team incorporated a light-responsive molecule called 2,3-bis(2,4,5-trimethyl-3-thienyl) maleimide (BTTM) directly into the perovskite absorber layer, achieving a power conversion efficiency of 24.71%, up from 22.07% in unmodified devices.

Illustration of the BTTM molecule. Image from: Research

Halide perovskites possess a soft ionic lattice that makes them vulnerable during continuous sunlight exposure. High-energy ultraviolet irradiation oxidizes halide ions within the perovskite layer, accelerating iodide migration and component loss that degrades photovoltaic performance. While most approaches attempt to filter UV light externally, this team engineered protection from within the absorber itself.

In a first for Japan, a pioneering experiment is underway to grow rice under a canopy of perovskite-based solar cells, targeting two of the nation’s most pressing challenges: food sustainability and clean energy.

The project officially began with a ceremonial rice planting on May 11 at Chiba University’s Kashiwanoha Campus in Kashiwa. It explores the concept of “solar sharing” by installing thin, flexible perovskite solar panels above a rice paddy. The initiative aims to generate electricity while cultivating crops on the same land, potentially increasing farm income while contributing to climate goals.

Tokyo Chemical Industry (TCI), a global supplier of laboratory chemicals and specialty materials, is offering BrNH3-4PACz materials, an SAM-forming agent, that can be used as a replacement for PEDOT/PSS in tandem perovskite solar cells.

TCI explains that in a tandem perovskite solar cell architecture, a wide-bandgap (WBG) Pb-PSC (the top cell) is placed on top of a narrow-bandgap (NBG) Pb/Sn-PSC (the bottom cell). In NBG-type PSCs, the PEDOT/PSS (HTL) material has a drawback in that it oxidizes Sn2+ Therefore, in the fabrication of PSCs containing Sn (including NBG-type PSCs), it is considered desirable to replace PEDOT/PSS with a self-assembled monolayer (SAM)-forming agent. This has been shown in several research papers, including this 2025 one.

Researchers from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan Institute of Technology and CNPC USA Corporation (CNPCUSA) have demonstrated a non‑contact laser polishing and surface reconstruction strategy that tackles one of the main bottlenecks in all‑perovskite tandem solar cells: the defective, rough surfaces of lead-tin narrow‑bandgap (NBG) subcells that drive non‑radiative recombination and hinder carrier extraction.

Using a picosecond ultraviolet pulsed laser polishing technology (PLPT), the team converts these rough, defect‑rich NBG perovskite surfaces into smooth, well‑defined interfaces. PLPT precisely removes the defective top layer of the Pb-Sn perovskite without mechanical contact, exposing a new surface composed of [PbI₆]⁴⁻/[SnI₆]⁴⁻ octahedral frameworks enriched with metastable A‑site vacancies (VA). These A‑site‑deficient frameworks act as an open platform for targeted reconstruction, enabling controlled insertion of new A‑site cations while preserving the inorganic octahedral backbone.

Researchers at Jilin Jianzhu University, Harbin Institute of Technology, Nankai University and Sichuan University of Science & Engineering have developed a fully integrated wearable platform that combines flexible perovskite solar cells (FPSCs) with multifunctional graphene-based sensors, enabling simultaneous energy harvesting and real-time self-evaluation.

Wearable flexible solar cells have traditionally functioned solely as power sources, lacking the ability to monitor their own condition or provide feedback on performance degradation. This limitation makes it difficult to determine issues such as mechanical damage or optimal replacement timing. The team addressed this gap by integrating laser-induced graphene (LIG) sensors directly with a flexible perovskite solar cell on a single polyimide (PI) substrate, creating a monolithic system capable of both energy conversion and multi-parameter sensing.

A team of researchers, led by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), has developed a generalizable strategy to control crystallization kinetics in all-perovskite tandem solar cells, enabling certified power conversion efficiencies of 30.3% in rigid devices and 28.0% in flexible configurations.

Synchronized crystallization drives efficient rigid and flexible perovskite tandems. Image credit: NIMTE

All-perovskite tandems can enable high efficiency and compatibility with low-temperature solution processing. However, their performance has been consistently limited by asynchronous crystallization in multicomponent perovskite systems. This effect arises from mismatched coordination chemistry and crystallization rates among mixed halide systems and Pb²⁺/Sn²⁺ cations, leading to vertical compositional gradients, structural inhomogeneity, and elevated non-radiative recombination losses.

Researchers from Hanyang University, Ajou University and POSTECH have developed a hydrolysis-assisted ligand-exchange strategy that significantly improves charge transport and efficiency in metal halide perovskite nanocrystal (MHP NC) LEDs, achieving a record external quantum efficiency (EQE) of 31.7% for green-emitting devices.

Schematic illustration of the ligand-exchange and surface-functionalization process of MHP NCs. Image from: Advanced Materials

MHP nanocrystals are widely considered promising candidates for next-generation light-emitting diodes due to their excellent color purity and high radiative efficiency. However, their performance has been limited by the presence of long-chain native ligands on the nanocrystal surface. These ligands are weakly bound and electrically insulating, which hinders charge injection and transport, introduces trap states, and ultimately leads to energy losses in devices. To address these challenges, the researchers introduced a multifunctional π-conjugated pyridine carboxamide (PCA) ligand via a hydrolysis-assisted, one-step ligand-exchange process. This approach removes the original insulating ligands under mild conditions and replaces them with PCA, which provides multidentate, multisite surface coordination. The ligand acts as a strong anchoring group while simultaneously enabling enhanced electronic coupling between nanocrystals and inducing n-type surface functionalization.

Researchers from China Jiliang University, Wuhan University, Hangzhou Dianzi University and Hubei Normal University have introduced a bilayer interface engineering strategy that induces a vertically oriented 1D perovskite capping layer on top of a 3D perovskite absorber. 

This architecture targets 1D/3D heterostructure perovskite solar cells, which are already known for their exceptional stability but usually suffer from horizontally aligned or disordered 1D phases that hinder carrier transport along the device thickness. By enforcing vertical alignment of the 1D phase, the new design directly improves charge extraction along the preferred transport direction.

Researchers from North Carolina State University and Brown University have developed a microfluidic self-driving laboratory, termed PoLARIS (perovskite laboratory for autonomous reaction inference and synthesis), capable of rapidly optimizing and analyzing the synthesis of complex, multi-element perovskite nanocrystals. The platform addresses a key challenge in materials discovery: efficiently navigating the vast, high-dimensional parameter space associated with compositionally complex systems.

Self-driving laboratories combine automated experimentation with machine-learning-guided decision-making, but their application to materials with multiple coupled reaction pathways has remained limited. In this work, the researchers demonstrate that PoLARIS can autonomously synthesize and optimize metal halide double perovskite nanoplatelets containing up to six distinct elements, using a continuous-flow heat-up reaction.

The countdown is on for Perovskite Connect 2026, returning to Berlin on 21–22 October 2026. If you’re planning to attend, now’s the perfect time to secure your place - as prices will be going up at the end of the month!

Join leading researchers, manufacturers, and innovators shaping the landscape of the perovskite photovoltaics field. Building on last year’s momentum, Perovskite Connect 2026 will once again unite the global perovskite community for two days of insights, networking, and progress.