Watering solar cells makes them grow... in power
Perovskite solar cells are the rising star in the photovoltaic landscape. Since their invention, less than ten years ago, their efficiency has doubled twice and it is now over 22% - an astonishing result in the renewable energy sector. Taking the name 'perovskite' from the light-harvesting layer that characterizes them, these solar cells are lighter, cheaper, and more flexible than the traditional crystalline silicon-based cells.
Perovskite solar cells are usually exposed to ambient air for several hours after fabrication. This procedure increases their efficiency, even if the reason behind the phenomenon was unclear. The scientific explanation of this practice has now been discovered by researchers from the Energy Materials and Surface Sciences Unit (EMSS) at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology Graduate University (OIST) led by Prof Yabing Qi. Their results are published in Advanced Materials Interfaces.
"It's intriguing: why do we need ambient air to enhance the effectiveness of perovskite solar cells?" Zafer Hawash, first author of the study and an OIST PhD student, commented. "Which component of the ambient air is linked to this phenomenon?" Starting from these questions, the researchers focused their attention on the top layer of the solar cells.
Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2016-07-solar-cells-power.html#jCp
