Solvothermal synthesis of SnO2 nanoparticles for perovskite solar cells application

Abstract

Perovskite solar cells show great potential application prospects in the field of solar cells due to their promising properties. However, most perovskite solar cells that exhibit excellent photovoltaic performance typically require a carrier transport layer that necessitates a high-temperature annealing process. This greatly restricts the scalability and compatibility of perovskite solar cells in flexible electronics. In this paper, SnO2 nanoparticles with high crystallinity, good dispersibility and uniform particle size distribution are first prepared using a solvothermal method and dispersed in n-butanol solution. SnO2 electron transport layers are then prepared by a low-temperature spin coating method, and the photovoltaic characteristics of perovskite solar cells prepared with different SnO2 nanoparticles/n-butanol concentrations are studied. Results indicate that the rigid perovskite solar cell achieves the highest power conversion efficiency of 15.61% when the concentration of SnO2 nanoparticles/n-butanol is 15 mg mL−1. Finally, our strategy is successfully applying on flexible perovskite solar cells with a highest PCE of 14.75%. Our paper offers a new possibility for large-scale preparation and application of perovskite solar cells in flexible electronics in the future.