Subjects

- Energy

- Solar cells

Abstract

Conventional n–i–p architecture remains a robust platform for scalable perovskite photovoltaics1,2, yet its steady-state efficiency has stagnated at ~26% (ref.3), lagging behind p–i–n counterparts4. This performance gap arises from persistent non-radiative recombination at textured electron transport layer (ETL)/perovskite interfaces, yet the underlying physical origin remains unclear. Here, we uncover that these losses originate from the synergistic combination of band misalignment and electron accumulation at the buried interface. To address this dual challenge, we develop a continuously graded n+/n-doped SnO2 ETL through a ligand-competitive binding strategy, which enables spatially defined doping that creates a built-in electric field. This graded architecture simultaneously minimizes band offset and accelerates electron extraction, thereby effectively suppressing the cross-interface recombination. The resulting n–i–p perovskite solar cells (PSCs) achieve a certified steady-state power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 27.17% (27.50% in reverse scan), the highest for n–i–p PSCs reported to date. The scalability of this strategy is further demonstrated by achieving a PCE of 25.79% for a 1 cm2 device and 23.33% for a perovskite module with a 16.02 cm2 aperture area. This work establishes a generalized paradigm for energy-band engineering in metal-oxide transport layers, overcoming a fundamental efficiency bottleneck in conventional perovskite photovoltaics.

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Author information

Author notes- These authors contributed equally: Di Wang, Saisai Li, Zijin Ding

Authors and Affiliations

- State Key Laboratory of Advanced Chemical Power Sources, Frontiers Science Center for New Organic Matter, Key Laboratory of Advanced Energy Materials Chemistry (Ministry of Education), Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, College of Chemistry, Nankai University, Tianjin, P. R. China

Di Wang

(王迪), Saisai Li

(李赛赛), Zijin Ding

(丁紫津), Xingyu Chen

(陈星宇), Qiao Zheng

(郑樵), Keyu Wei

(韦科妤), Yuanzhi Jiang

(姜源植), Jun Chen

(陈军) & Mingjian Yuan

(袁明鉴)

- School of Interdisciplinary Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, P. R. China

Jian Xu

(徐健)

- Department of Physics, College of Science, Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Thamraa Alshahrani

- PHI Analytical Laboratory, ULVAC-PHI Instruments Co., Ltd, Nanjing, P. R. China

Lin Feng

(冯林), Ou Yang

(杨欧) & Huanxin Ju

(鞠焕鑫)

- Department of Physics & Astronomy, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Saif M. H. Qaid

- Haihe Laboratory of Sustainable Chemical Transformations, Tianjin, P. R. China

Yuanzhi Jiang

(姜源植), Jun Chen

(陈军) & Mingjian Yuan

(袁明鉴)

- Ultrafast Electron Microscopy Laboratory, The MOE Key Laboratory of Weak-Light Nonlinear Photonics, College of Physics, Nankai University, Tianjin, P. R. China

Xinxin Yue

(岳鑫欣) & Xuewen Fu

(付学文)

- College of Physics Science and Technology, Hebei University, Baoding, Hebei, P. R. China

Tingwei He

(何庭伟)

- Nano-Science Center and Department of Chemistry, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark

Siyu Liu

(刘思宇)

Authors- Di Wang

(王迪)View author publications