Stable and durable CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite solar cells at ambient conditions.

Degradation of metal-organic halide perovskites when exposed to ambient conditions is a crucial issue that needs to be addressed for commercial viability of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Here, a concept of encapsulating CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite crystals with a multi-functional graphene-polyaniline (PANI) composite coating to protect the perovskite against degradation from moisture, oxygen and UV light is presented. Hole-conducting polymers containing 2D layered sheet materials are presented here as multi-functional materials with oxygen and moisture impermeability. Specific studies involving PANI and graphene composites as coatings for perovskite crystals exhibited resistance to moisture and oxygen under continued exposure to UV and visible light. Most importantly, no perovskite degradation was observed even after 96 h of exposure of the PSCs to extremely high humidity (99% relative humidity). Our observations and results on perovskite protection with graphene/conducting polymer composites open up opportunities for glove-box-free and atmospheric processing of PSCs.

Intense Pulsed Light Sintering of CH3NH3PbI3 Solar Cells.

Perovskite solar cells utilizing a two-step deposited CH3NH3PbI3 thin film were rapidly sintered using an intense pulsed light source. For the first time, a heat treatment has shown the capability of sintering methylammonium lead iodide perovskite and creating large crystal sizes approaching 1 µm without sacrificing surface coverage. Solar cells with an average efficiency of 11.5% and a champion device of 12.3% are reported. The methylammonium lead iodide perovskite was subjected to 2000 J of energy in a 2 ms pulse of light generated by a xenon lamp, resulting in temperatures significantly exceeding the degradation temperature of 150 °C. The process opens up new opportunities in the manufacturability of perovskite solar cells by eliminating the rate-limiting annealing step, and makes it possible to envision a continuous roll-to-roll process similar to the printing press used in the newspaper industry.

Fabrication of Elemental Copper by Intense Pulsed Light Processing of a Copper Nitrate Hydroxide Ink.

Printed electronics and renewable energy technologies have shown a growing demand for scalable copper and copper precursor inks. An alternative copper precursor ink of copper nitrate hydroxide, Cu2(OH)3NO3, was aqueously synthesized under ambient conditions with copper nitrate and potassium hydroxide reagents. Films were deposited by screen-printing and subsequently processed with intense pulsed light. The Cu2(OH)3NO3 quickly transformed in less than 100 s using 40 (2 ms, 12.8 J cm(-2)) pulses into CuO. At higher energy densities, the sintering improved the bulk film quality. The direct formation of Cu from the Cu2(OH)3NO3 requires a reducing agent; therefore, fructose and glucose were added to the inks. Rather than oxidizing, the thermal decomposition of the sugars led to a reducing environment and direct conversion of the films into elemental copper. The chemical and physical transformations were studied with XRD, SEM, FTIR and UV-vis.

Intense pulsed light treatment of cadmium telluride nanoparticle-based thin films.

The search for low-cost growth techniques and processing methods for semiconductor thin films continues to be a growing area of research; particularly in photovoltaics. In this study, electrochemical deposition was used to grow CdTe nanoparticulate based thin films on conducting glass substrates. After material characterization, the films were thermally sintered using a rapid thermal annealing technique called intense pulsed light (IPL). IPL is an ultrafast technique which can reduce thermal processing times down to a few minutes, thereby cutting production times and increasing throughput. The pulses of light create localized heating lasting less than 1 ms, allowing films to be processed under atmospheric conditions, avoiding the need for inert or vacuum environments. For the first time, we report the use of IPL treatment on CdTe thin films. X-ray diffraction (XRD), optical absorption spectroscopy (UV-Vis), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and room temperature photoluminescence (PL) were used to study the effects of the IPL processing parameters on the CdTe films. The results found that optimum recrystallization and a decrease in defects occurred when pulses of light with an energy density of 21.6 J cm(-2) were applied. SEM images also show a unique feature of IPL treatment: the formation of a continuous melted layer of CdTe, removing holes and voids from a nanoparticle-based thin film.