Down-Shifting and Anti-Reflection Effect of CsPbBr₃ Quantum Dots/Multicrystalline Silicon Hybrid Structures for...

Over the past couple of decades, extensive research has been conducted on silicon (Si) based solar cells, whose power conversion efficiency (PCE) still has limitations because of a mismatched solar spectrum. Recently, a down-shifting effect has provided a new way to improve cell performances by converting ultraviolet (UV) photons to visible light. In this work, caesium lead bromide perovskite quantum dots (CsPbBr₃ QDs) are synthesized with a uniform size of 10 nm. Exhibiting strong absorption of near UV light and intense photoluminescence (PL) peak at 515 nm, CsPbBr₃ QDs show a potential application of the down-shifting effect. CsPbBr₃ QDs/multicrystalline silicon (mc-Si) hybrid structured solar cells are fabricated and systematically studied. Compared with mc-Si solar cells, CsPbBr₃ QDs/mc-Si solar cells have obvious improvement in external quantum efficiency (EQE) within the wavelength ranges of both 300 to 500 nm and 700 to 1100 nm, which can be attributed to the down-shifting effect and the anti-reflection property of CsPbBr₃ QDs through the formation of CsPbBr₃ QDs/mc-Si structures. Furthermore, a detailed discussion of contact resistance and interface defects is provided. As a result, the coated CsPbBr₃ QDs are optimized to be two layers and the solar cell exhibits a highest PCE of 14.52%.