Performance of Monolithic Two‐ and Three‐Terminal Perovskite/Silicon Tandem Solar Cells Under Varying Illumination Conditions

Abstract

Research on perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells is chiefly focused on devices in either two‐ or four‐terminal configurations (2T and 4T, respectively). Straying from these commonly investigated approaches, an alternative monolithically integrated device architecture using three terminals (3T) by combining a semi‐transparent perovskite top cell with a silicon heterojunction bottom cell featuring interdigitated rear contacts is presented. In the presence of a p/n recombination junction between subcells, a quasi‐2T configuration is obtained where the additional terminal functions as a current regulator. Thus, in contrast to 2T tandems, current matching between subcells is not necessary. Therefore, these devices are more stable against spectral variations, especially their voltages at maximum power point, as surplus current can be either injected into or extracted from the additional terminal. This is tested both by simulations and for the first time experimentally. Interestingly, the highest power conversion efficiency is not achieved by current matching but by maximizing current generation in the top cell. An experimental realization of a 3T tandem with p/n recombination junction and a power conversion efficiency of 24.9% is presented, thus confirming the general viability of the concept.

Bandgap Pairing in Three‐Terminal Tandem Solar Cells: From Limiting Efficiency to Voltage‐Matched Device Performance

“…The characterization procedure to extract the efficiency map is described in detail in ref. [25]. The same perovskite top cell stack has also recently been used in a high‐efficiency 2T TSC [ 38 ] with hole‐collecting contact as described in ref.…”

“…[4] Limitations of the detailed balance limit and a comparison to other theoretical efficiency limits are reported by Markvart. [6] In this article, we investigate the detailed balance limit of three-terminal tandem solar cells (3T TSCs), which have recently gained scientific interest, [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26] and for which a record PCE above 29% (certified at 29.56% in two-terminal operation) was presented. [24] For a comprehensive overview of the different types and loading topologies of 3T TSCs, see Warren et al [17] An overview of the two types of 3 T TSCs that are considered in this article is given in Figure 1.…”

Perovskite/silicon tandem solar cells based on different layers and structures

“…The maximum PCE, at 24.9% in the experiment, was achieved when the photocurrent reached a maximum, regardless of the effect of current matching. Additionally, the voltage was unrelated to the spectral, improving the robustness [18].…”

Optical Analysis of Perovskite III-V Nanowires Interpenetrated Tandem Solar Cells

“…Many reports have investigated the integration of MHPs with Si solar cells due to the commercial availability of the latter technology [ 16 , 17 , 18 ]. These studies have shown promising results in terms of power conversion efficiency for planar structures [ 19 , 20 ] and different tandem architectures [ 21 , 22 ]. Raja et al focused on the integration of perovskite nanostructures with Si [ 23 ], obtaining a 21% power conversion efficiency enhancement with respect to the planar counterpart.…”