Abstract
Irreversible ion migration from the perovskite layer to the charge transport layer and metal electrodes causes irreversible efficiency loss in perovskite solar cells. Confining the mobile ions within the perovskite layer is a promising strategy to improve the long-term operational stability of solar cells. Here we inhibit the migration of iodide ions out of the perovskite under light illumination by creating a depletion region inside the perovskite layer. Precise control of the doping depth induces an electric field within the perovskite that counteracts ion migration while enhancing carrier separation. Our devices exhibit a certified power conversion efficiency of 24.6% and maintain over 88% of the initial efficiency after 1,920 h of continuous illumination under maximum power point conditions (65 °C in ambient air, following the ISOS-L-2 protocol). The power conversion efficiency returns to more than 94% of its initial value after overnight recovery. When operating under repeated 12 h light on/off cycles for over 10,000 h (solar simulator at 65 °C and ambient air, following the ISOS-LC-2 protocol), the efficiency loss is less than 2%. We expect this method to open up new and effective avenues towards enhancing the long-term stability of high-performance perovskite photovoltaics.
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Data availability
The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding authors on reasonable request.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (grant nos. 2020YFB1506400 and 2021YFB3800100) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant nos. U20A20245, U21A20171, 11834011 and 12074245). We thank H. Li, Q. Shan for KPFM measurements; R. Wang for TRPL measurements; J. Ding for TOF-SIMS measurements; X. Ding and N. Zhang for XPS and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy measurements; B. Zhu for Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy measurements; Q. Rao for X-ray diffraction measurements; and Z. Bao and Y. Lin for SEM measurement from the Instrumental Analysis Center of Shanghai Jiao Tong University. We thank X. Liu from the College of Arts and Sciences, University of Tokyo, for valuable advice on the experiments and paper.
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Z.S., Q.H., Y.Y. and L.H. conceived the experiments, performed data analysis and wrote the paper. Z.S. led the fabrication of the solar cells. Y.S. and X.L. helped with the sample preparation for characterization. Y.W., Y.Y. and Y.Z. participated the discussion about the feasibility of the experiment. All authors discussed the results and commented on the paper. Q.H. and L.H. directed and supervised the entire research.
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Characterization, Supplementary Notes 1 and 2, Figs. 1–37 and Tables 1–8.
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Shen, Z., Han, Q., Luo, X. et al. Efficient and stable perovskite solar cells with regulated depletion region. Nat. Photon. 18, 450–457 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41566-024-01383-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41566-024-01383-5
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