Enhancing Pb-free inorganic perovskite solar cell using carbon as metal back contact and molybdenum trioxide as hole transport layer

Inorganic Pb-free perovskite solar cells have appeared in recent years as a promising and environmentally friendly technology in photovoltaics. In this study, we conducted a comprehensive simulation investigation using SCAPS-1D software to optimize Pb-free inorganic perovskite solar cells, focusing specifically on the use of RbGeI3 as the absorber material in the FTO/TiO2/RbGeI3/MoO3/C device architecture. The carbon back contact in this configuration stands out for its cost-effectiveness and durability. Our research focused on the influence of various critical parameters, including the thickness of the absorber, electron affinity of ETL and HTL, series, and shunt resistances, back-contact material work functions, and operating temperatures. This achieved a PCE of 29.47 %, FF of 78.22 %, VOC of 1.111 V and JSC of 33.91 mA/cm2. The results indicate that perovskite solar cells using RbGeI3 as an absorber material exhibit improved performance and good thermal stability, underlining the great potential of this material. In addition, the eco-friendly characteristics of these Pb-free inorganic perovskite solar cells hold great promise for advancing the field of clean energy conversion technologies, marking an important step towards sustainable and efficient energy solutions.