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Aerosolar, a spin-out company from Queen Mary University of London, has created a novel aerosol method that it claims increases the efficiency and stability of perovskite metal halide solar cells.
British company Aerosolar has developed a post-deposition process for perovskite solar cells that improves the efficiency and stability of the device.
The company describes the process as “simple and effective” across a wide range of perovskite compositions, device structures and areas.
“We developed aerosol-assisted solvent treatment in the laboratory using a 2.5 cm x 7.5 cm reactor. We are expanding it to 23 cm x 23 cm, to fit up to the M12 wafer size,” Aerosolar founder Joe Briscoe told pv magazine . “The business model consists of starting with consulting and designing custom equipment, to potentially progress towards manufacturing standardized equipment.”
The company plans to apply its process in both batches and coils, and work with perovskite solar cell manufacturers who wish to implement this process step. It has recently received a technology transfer grant from Innovate UK, the UKs national innovation agency.
The technology was originally tested with a solution of dimethylformamide (DMF) alone or with added methylammonium chloride (MACI), which enhances grain growth of perovskite cells, reducing local defects and improving overall uniformity.
Compared to direct thermal annealing, the new technique allows processing at lower temperatures. Aerosolar claims that it improves crystallinity and grain size, as well as reducing its distribution. It also highlights that throughout the aerosol treatment, the films remain solid and no dissolution of the perovskite film occurs, and the process lasts less than five minutes.
Aerosol targets perovskite solar cell manufacturers with its new solvent-based process. It is described in the study “ Aerosol Assisted Solvent Treatment: A Universal Method for Performance and Stability Enhancements in Perovskite Solar Cells ,” in Advanced Energy Materials . |
