China’s upcoming Shenzhou-23 crewed mission will carry two types of perovskite solar cell materials and devices to the China Space Station, to test the in‑orbit performance of this technology in such an environment. The experiment aims to evaluate how different perovskite architectures handle the harsh conditions of low‑Earth orbit, including strong UV radiation, high‑energy particles, atomic oxygen, and large temperature swings.
Shenzhou‑23 will deliver both single‑junction perovskite devices and perovskite‑based tandem solar cell samples to the space station for long‑term testing. The samples, developed under the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Semiconductors, are designed to leverage perovskite’s high absorption coefficient, low-temperature processability and high specific power, targeting lightweight, thin and flexible form factors suitable for space power systems. The experiment aims to correlate device performance with combined stressors including UV-rich space radiation spectra, high-energy particle irradiation, atomic oxygen exposure and severe thermal cycling.
Data from the Shenzhou-23 campaign are expected to feed into the design of high-efficiency, high power-to-mass ratio, low-cost flexible PV architectures for next-generation LEO satellites, space station arrays, deep-space infrastructure and prospective lunar surface power installations.
