Submicron Organic–Inorganic Hybrid Radiative Cooling Coatings for Stable, Ultrathin, and Lightweight Solar Cells

Abstract

Solar cell technology requires materials that are efficient, lightweight, and stable. Organic–inorganic lead halide perovskite- and polymer-based bulk heterojunction solar cells have emerged as highly promising, ultralightweight, flexible, and highly efficient power sources. However, they suffer from limited stability, which is significantly affected by the cell temperature, in addition to other factors like oxidization and moisture in the absence of appropriate encapsulation. Here, by performing a coupled opto-electro-thermal modeling, we report the design of a compatible and novel, ultrathin, submicron, multipurpose organic–inorganic hybrid radiative cooling coating/scheme that, by providing photonic cooling, decreases the cell temperature by up to ∼7.2 K compared to the encapsulated ultrathin solar cell technology, without requiring any external energy input. In addition to the significant temperature reduction, the power conversion efficiency of cells also increases, fulfilling the requirements of high performance at minimal weight, combined with high stability and flexibility, paving the way for next-generation, stable and efficient, ultralightweight solar cells.

Passive Photovoltaic Cooling: Advances Toward Low‐Temperature Operation

“…According to Stefan-Boltzmann law, the infrared emission peak of photovoltaic panels (≈60 °C) is within the atmospheric window of 8-13 μm, which is the basic principle for radiative pho-tovoltaic cooling. [54,101,[129][130][131][132][133][134] In 2014, Fan's group re-proposed the promising passive cooling method of photovoltaic panels via radiative cooling. [135] They developed the modeling for photovoltaic panels with radiative coolers and revealed that the cooling method can enable a great temperature drop of ≈18.3 K, compared to that of the bare silicon absorber.…”

Metamaterial Solar Absorber Based on Refractory Metal Titanium and Its Compound

“…Besides, small thickness of the designed absorber is one of advantages. Thus, the proposed meta-surface as a coating of solar cells is a direction worth considering [35,36].…”

Recent progress in organic-based radiative cooling materials: fabrication methods and thermal management properties

“…31,32 Organic-based materials are ubiquitous in our daily life thanks to their scalability, versatility, and easy manufacturing. Nowadays, more and more organic-based radiative cooling materials are processed to include air voids to promote ultrabroadband sunlight reflection and effective thermal-infrared emission, 33 such as nano-porous membranes, 34,35 nanofiber membranes, 36,37 organic-inorganic composite membranes, [38][39][40] and nano-porous gel with high reflectivity. 41,42 The main advantages of organic-based radiative cooling materials are their scalability, mechanical resistance and flexibility, weather resistance, and electric insulation, making them suitable for outdoor applications.…”