Hybrid crystalline-ITO/metal nanowire mesh transparent electrodes and their application for highly flexible perovskite solar cells

摘要

Reinforcing transparent electrodes with a nanowire mesh brings solar cells that can wrap around objects one step closer to production. Indium tin oxide (ITO) is a rarity among metal oxide crystals – it is optically transparent and conductive enough to serve as electrodes in flat-panel displays and solar cells. Byeong-Soo Bae from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology and co-workers have now discovered how to make ITO into 10-nanometre-thin, flexible electrodes using a resin embedded with metal nanowires. Normally, the high temperatures needed to produce ITO crystals degrade flexible polymer substrates. But the nanowires impart sufficient mechanical strength to keep the electrodes pliant after ITO heat treatment. Depositing perovskite-type crystals onto the electrodes enabled the researchers to fabricate bendable solar cells with power conversion efficiencies of 12-14%.