Engineers at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney, working with the company UtmoLight, have set a world efficiency record for large-area perovskite solar submodules. The team is led by Professor Xiaojing Hao.
The submodule measures 30 by 30 centimetres, with a 676 cm² aperture area, and reached a certified stabilised efficiency of 23.5%, 0.6 percentage points above the previous benchmark. The team also did away with a commonly used nickel oxide layer, which can react with the perovskite and adds a manufacturing step.
Perovskite is a promising material for cheaper, more efficient solar panels, but the best results usually come from lab cells of around 1 cm². This record narrows the gap between the lab and full-size modules.
The next step is to produce, within a few months, a full module of about 2.8 m², targeting 18% to 19% efficiency. The researchers stress that long-term stability and reproducibility still need work.
