Colloidal
quantum dots (QDs) have lately been pursued with intense
vigor for optoelectronic applications such as photovoltaics (PV),
flexible electronics, displays, mid-infrared photodetectors, lasers,
and single-photon emitters. These nanometer-sized semiconducting crystals
can be suitably mass-produced and size-tuned via cost-effective solution-based
synthetic routes to operate in the quantum size confinement regime,
endowing them with a wide array of exotic optical and electronic properties.
While the first potential market entry could be in displays and in
niche applications such as “internet-of-things”, ultimately,
the technology has the potential to influence large-scale terrestrial
power generation, because it is amenable to high-throughput synthesis
from Earth-abundant materials and large-area solution-based coating
techniques and can be air-stable. In this Review, we chronicle the
recent advances that have propelled QD PV toward commercialization
and highlight potential areas for further progress. We present an
account of the material compositions being explored as QDs and their
various benefits, major chemical passivation and doping strategies
that have been developed to allay QD surface traps, and advanced device
designs deployed to maximize charge extraction. We also discuss pathways
to >20% efficient QD PV and describe recent advances in high-precision
and autonomous synthesis of such materials. With recent demonstrations
of scalable synthesis of high-quality QDs, smart manufacturing of
QDs and QD solids, and fabrication of stable solar cells under ambient
conditions, we suggest that the technology is on the road to achieving
maturity and technological relevance and that gigawatt per year distributed
panel production sites may be within reach.