Perovskite Solar - Page 5

Researchers from China's Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Fujian Science & Technology Innovation Laboratory for Energy Devices of China (CATL 21C Lab) and Shanghai Non-carbon Energy Conversion and Utilization Institute have developed an in situ dual‑interface modification strategy to enhance the performance and durability of large‑area perovskite solar modules.

The team addresses a critical challenge in p–i–n‑type perovskite solar cells: the simultaneous optimization of the two key interfaces - particularly between the perovskite layer and self‑assembled monolayers (SAMs). These interfaces largely determine device efficiency and stability, yet their regulation has remained difficult to achieve in scalable, large‑area module fabrication.

SolaEon has announced it has achieved what it claims to be a new world record: 27.87% efficiency for a single‑junction perovskite solar cell, certified by China’s National Photovoltaic Industry Metrology and Testing Center (NPVM). The record cell reaches 27.87% power conversion efficiency on a 0.076 cm² device, which means it is in the lab‑scale category, and has a high 87.61% fill factor.

This achievement is seen as part of an ongoing laboratory efficiency drive, noting that SolaEon has reported multiple perovskite-related record updates in recent years. However, while this can be seen as a step toward the theoretical efficiency limit for single-junction perovskite cells, often cited at around 33%, the reported record remains a laboratory-scale result. Significant challenges remain before such performance levels can be translated into commercially viable products. 

A research team, led by South Korea's Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), recently designed a scalable perovskite solar architecture that directly tackles the bottleneck of efficiency loss and instability in larger-area devices. As perovskite cells are scaled up, it becomes increasingly difficult to form a uniform, defect‑free perovskite layer, which leads to enhanced non‑radiative recombination, higher series resistance, and rapid performance degradation under operation.

To overcome this, the researchers re‑engineered the buried electron transport layer (ETL), starting from conventional tin oxide (SnO₂) and incorporating a thin polyethyleneimine (PEI) modifier directly into the SnO₂ during ETL formation. This dual‑function treatment simultaneously improves surface wettability and tunes the SnO₂ work function, which suppresses oxygen‑vacancy defects, establishes favorable interfacial dipoles, and better aligns energy levels with the perovskite absorber. 

Perovskite developer UtmoLight has announced it has won the bid for the Phase IV PV project at the National PV and Energy Storage Demonstration Platform (Daqing Base), led by SPIC. The company will supply 1 MW of large-format perovskite PV modules, each measuring 2.81 m². 

Earlier in 2025, Microquanta deployed 1 MW of 0.72 m² perovskite modules for Phase III of the same base. The company claims that operational data from the Phase III batch shows an average system Performance Ratio (PR) approaching 100%.

At a press conference held by China’s State Council Information Office on January 21, 2026, Vice Minister Zhang Yunming of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) highlighted perovskite materials as one of the key technologies now recognized as being at the international advanced level. This acknowledgment places perovskites alongside other high-impact technologies shaping China’s emerging industrial landscape.

Zhang’s remarks indicate that perovskites are central to China’s strategic technological push under the 14th Five-Year Plan, which aims to modernize traditional industries and accelerate the development of new and future industries. The inclusion of perovskite materials among the nation’s most advanced innovations suggests strong government support for their research, commercialization, and integration into industrial applications - especially relevant given perovskites’ growing importance in next-generation photovoltaics and optoelectronic devices.

Researchers at Nanjing University, Uppsala University, Dyenamo AB and The Australian National University have developed a wet-film intervention strategy using bifunctional n-butylammonium thiocyanate (nBASCN) to regulate perovskite crystallization and mitigate the adverse impact of moisture. This method addresses the issue of ambient moisture, which triggers irreversible surface decomposition and complicates the production of perovskite solar cells under ambient conditions.

The strategic incorporation of SCN⁻ into wet films reportedly enables homogeneous secondary grain growth with enhanced crystallinity and grain size by decoupling the crystallization process from environmental humidity. Optimally tailored nBA⁺ cations balance hydrophobicity with SCN⁻-assisted crystallization, constructing a self-volatile 2D hydrophobic barrier that effectively suppresses moisture-induced surface degradation without compromising charge transport. 

Researchers form East China Normal University and Linköping University have tackled a key bottleneck in mixed tin–lead perovskite solar cells: their tendency to decompose under heat and illumination, especially when conventional tin fluoride additives are used to stabilize tin. Tin–lead perovskites are attractive for high-efficiency, low-bandgap absorbers in all-perovskite tandem architectures, but their operational durability has lagged behind lead-only devices, limiting their commercial relevance.

Schematic of the device structure. Image from: Nature Communications

In their recent work, the team identified parasitic reactions involving tin fluoride as a previously overlooked driver of photothermal instability and electrode corrosion in Sn–Pb perovskite cells. To circumvent this, they eliminated tin fluoride from the precursor and instead introduced metallic lead powder as an antioxidant and crystallization-regulating additive, combined with a post-deposition lead fluoride treatment to passivate surface defects. The resulting devices adopt a conventional planar stack - ITO/P3CT-Cs/perovskite/PbF₂/C₆₀/BCP/LiF/Cu - on 0.09 cm² test cells, demonstrating that the modified chemistry is compatible with standard lab-scale fabrication.

A collaborative team of researchers in China has demonstrated that deliberately polarizing the solvent environment with fluorinated polymers can tightly regulate the intermediate phase during perovskite crystallization, enabling both record efficiency and greatly improved operational stability in inverted perovskite solar cells. Their work shows that embedding polar polymers to stabilize these fragile intermediate states gives device engineers a new, polarization-based handle over film formation and defect suppression, pushing perovskites closer to industrially relevant processing windows.

Dynamic solution processing of perovskite absorbers typically involves rapid solvent evaporation and uncontrolled intermediate‑phase formation, which can lead to non‑uniform nucleation, high defect densities, and instability under continuous illumination. This sensitivity severely limits process latitude for scalable coating methods such as blade coating or slot‑die, where even modest changes in local solvent composition or drying rate can translate into significant efficiency loss and poor reproducibility. Conventional solvent engineering - for example, tuning Lewis base additives - improves film formation but does not directly stabilize the solvent‑rich intermediate structures that govern final crystal quality.

Solar cell equipment Maxwell announced that its G12H perovskite/silicon HJT tandem solar cell, developed using proprietary mass-production equipment and processes, achieved a power conversion efficiency of 32.38% certified by the China National Institute of Metrology (NIM). 

The company stated that this achievement integrates core turnkey technologies, including PECVD, PVD, ALD, and inkjet printing, demonstrating the viability of its equipment and processes for large-scale mass production.

Researchers from South Korea’s Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology and the Korea Institute of Science and Technology have shown that a natural antioxidant molecule can act as a self-regenerating shield for perovskite solar cells, enhancing operational stability. Drawing inspiration from taurine – a sulfur‑containing amino acid abundant in octopus and squid – the team introduced an ultrathin taurine layer at the buried interface between the tin‑dioxide electron‑transport layer and the perovskite absorber, where oxygen‑driven degradation usually begins.

Devices incorporating this antioxidant interlayer reportedly retained 97% of their initial efficiency after 450 hours of continuous illumination at 65 °C, far outperforming untreated controls.