In the past decade, the perovskite solar cell (PSC) has attracted tremendous attention thanks to the substantial efforts in improving the power conversion efficiency from 3.8% to 25.5% for single‐junction devices and even perovskite‐silicon tandems have reached 29.15%. This is a result of improvement in composition, solvent, interface, and dimensionality engineering. Furthermore, the long‐term stability of PSCs has also been significantly improved. Such rapid developments have made PSCs a competitive candidate for next‐generation photovoltaics. The electron transport layer (ETL) is one of the most important functional layers in PSCs, due to its crucial role in contributing to the overall performance of devices. This review provides an up‐to‐date summary of the developments in inorganic electron transport materials (ETMs) for PSCs. The three most prevalent inorganic ETMs (TiO2, SnO2, and ZnO) are examined with a focus on the effects of synthesis and preparation methods, as well as an introduction to their application in tandem devices. The emerging trends in inorganic ETMs used for PSC research are also reviewed. Finally, strategies to optimize the performance of ETL in PSCs, effects the ETL has on J–V hysteresis phenomenon and long‐term stability with an outlook on current challenges and further development are discussed.

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In the past decade, perovskite photovoltaics have achieved impressive progress in both efficiency and stability, bringing new insights and excitement in industrial sectors. Transitioning this technology from the laboratory to the industrial level first needs to overcome the crucial barrier of scalable fabrication. Although various synthetic routes have been developed for obtaining high-quality perovskite layers, there remains a gap between small-scale fabrication and industrial-level manufacturing, as the incumbent processing usually requires complex and energy-consuming treatments to remove the non-volatile solvents from those conventional perovskite inks. In this perspective, we conceptualize the volatile solution as an alternative ink system serving as a roadmap toward reliable manufacturing in the future. We discuss, starting from crystallization thermodynamics to insights into the chemistry ink system, its compatibility with various deposition techniques, and the analytic feasibility of scalable/stream-lined manufacturing using this new ink system. With this comprehensive minireview on the ongoing research and a discussion of its hypothetical potential/challenge, we hope to bring new inspiration and to catalyze the transition.

Tremendous efforts have been devoted to exploring various Li-O2 cathode catalysts for oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and oxygen evolution reaction (OER). However, most of the high-activity ORR/OER catalysts can also accelerate side-reactions, such as electrolyte degradation on cycling. To address this issue, we change our strategy from pursuing highly active catalysts to developing stable cathodes that are compatible with the electrolyte. In this work, hierarchical mesoporous ZnO/ZnFe2O4/C (ZZFC) nanocages are synthesized from the templates of metal-organic framework (MOF) nanocages. Such ZZFC nanocages have lower ORR/OER catalytic activity as compared with the widely used catalysts for fuel cells, but they do not catalyze the degradation of organic electrolyte during operation. Furthermore, the optimized porosity and conductivity can fit well the needs of the Li-O2 cathode. When employed in a Li-O2 battery, the ZZFC cathode delivers a primary discharge/charge capacity exceeding 11 000 mAh g(-1) at a current density of 300 mA g(-1) and an improved cyclability with capacity of 5000 mAh g(-1) for 15 cycles. The superior electrochemical performance is ascribed to the hierarchical porosity and little degradation of the organic electrolyte.