Devices team up to boost solar power

Abstract

Hot new solar cell materials are poised to rev up the output of traditional photovoltaics.The most efficient photovoltaics are devices called tandems that consist of stacks of solar cells, each tailored to absorb a different slice of the solar spectrum. This complexity makes them expensive and thus better suited for use in space where the extra power they produce is worth the added cost. But now, solar cell researchers are looking to create low-cost, high-efficiency tandems using perovskites, the hottest and cheapest new solar cell material out there. It's still early days, and progress on perovskite tandems remains modest. But researchers say the path to highly efficient perovskite tandems is clear and is expected to occur within the next year or two.