Record-breaking tandem solar cell now with precise scientific explanations

Impressive development in recent years

12-Jul-2023 - "This achievement was possible because we at HZB have built up expertise in both silicon heterojunction technology and perovskite solar cells and work very closely together," says Prof. Dr. Steve Albrecht, who leads a research group on perovskite tandem solar cells at HZB. For example, the ...

HZB and University of Jena found Helmholtz Institute for Polymers in Energy Applications

Developing internationally competitive energy materials

22-Jun-2023 - Friedrich Schiller University Jena and the Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin (Helmholtz Centre for Materials and Energy, HZB) are jointly founding the "Helmholtz Institute for Polymers in Energy Applications" (HIPOLE) on 1 July 2023. The aim of HIPOLE is to develop sustainable polymer materials for energy ...

World record back at HZB: Tandem solar cell achieves 32.5 percent efficiency

Interface modifications

20-Dec-2022 - The current world record of tandem solar cells consisting of a silicon bottom cell and a perovskite top cell is once again at HZB. The new tandem solar cell converts 32.5 % of the incident solar radiation into electrical energy. The certifying institute European Solar Test Installation (ESTI) in ...

Tandem solar cells with perovskite: nanostructures help in many ways

Customised nanotextures can help to improve perowskite semiconductor materials on diverse levels

02-Nov-2022 - By the end of 2021, teams at HZB had presented perovskite silicon tandem solar cells with an efficiency close to 30 percent. This value was a world record for eight months, a long time for this hotly contested field of research. In the journal Nature Nanotechnology, the scientists describe how ...

Predicting solar cell performance from terahertz and microwave spectroscopy

Reliably determine the mobility and lifetime of the charge carriers in new semiconducting materials

08-Mar-2022 - Many semiconducting materials are possible candidates for solar cells. In recent years, perovskite semiconductors in particular have attracted attention, as they are both inexpensive and easy to process and enable high efficiencies. Now a study with 15 participating research institutions shows ...

“Workhorse” of photovoltaics combined with perovskite in tandem for the first time

28-Feb-2022 - So-called PERC cells are used in mass production of silicon solar cells, they are considered the workhorses of photovoltaics, dominating the market. Now two teams from HZB and the Institute for Solar Energy Research in Hamelin (ISFH) have shown that such standard silicon cells are also suitable ...

Almost 30% efficiency for next-generation tandem solar cells

World record again at HZB

24-Nov-2021 - Three HZB teams led by Prof. Christiane Becker, Prof. Bernd Stannowski and Prof. Steve Albrecht have jointly managed to increase the efficiency of perovskite silicon tandem solar cells fabricated completely at HZB to a new record value of 29.80%. The value has now been officially certified and is ...

Perovskite solar cells: Defects trap charge carriers - and release them again

Results could help to further improve the properties of perovskite solar cells

11-Oct-2021 - A new study has investigated how charge carriers in so called MAPI-perovskite semiconductors interact with different defects. The results shows that a large proportion of defects quickly releases trapped charge carriers. These results could help to further improve the properties of perovskite ...

Lead-free perovskite solar cells

How fluorine additives improve quality

29-Jul-2021 - Tin halide perovskites are currently considered the best alternative to lead-containing analogues, but are still significantly less efficient and stable compared to them. Now, a team led by Prof. Antonio Abate from HZB has analysed the chemical processes in the perovskite precursor solution and ...

Perovskite Solar Cells: Insights into early stages of structure formation

Colloidal chemistry of perovskite precursor solutions investigated

25-Jun-2021 - Using small-angle scattering at the PTB X-ray beamline of BESSY II, an HZB team was able to experimentally investigate the colloidal chemistry of perovskite precursor solutions used for solar cell production. The results contribute to the targeted and systematic optimization of the manufacturing ...