(111) Facet-engineered SnO2 as Electron Transport Layer for Efficient and Stable Triple-Cation Perovskite Solar Cells

Abstract

We report the (111) facet-engineered cubic phase SnO2 (C-SnO2) as a novel electron transport layer (ETL) for triple-cation mixed-halide Cs0.05(FA0.83MA0.17)0.95Pb(I0.83Br0.17)3 perovskite solar cells (PSCs). The C-SnO2 layer was prepared via a normal sol-gel process followed by the spin-coating technique. The (111) facet C-SnO2 layer provides a larger surface contact area with an adjacent perovskite layer, enhancing charge transfer dynamics at the interface. In addition, the well-matched overlapping band structures improve the charge extraction efficiency between the two layers. Using (111) facet C-SnO2 as ETLs, we obtain PSCs with a higher power conversion efficiency of 20.34% (0.09 cm2) than those employing tetragonal phase SnO2 ETL. The PSCs with C-SnO2 ETL retain over 81% of their initial efficiency even after 480 h. This work concludes with a brief discussion on recombination and charge transport mechanisms, providing ways to optimize C-SnO2 ETL to improve the PSCs' performance and stability.