Systematic investigation of the impact of operation conditions on the degradation behaviour of perovskite solar cells

Perovskite solar cells have achieved power-conversion efficiency values approaching those of established photovoltaic technologies, making the reliable assessment of their operational stability the next essential step towards commercialization. Although studies increasingly often involve a form of stability characterization, they are conducted in non-standardized ways, which yields data that are effectively incomparable. Furthermore, stability assessment of a novel material system with its own peculiarities might require an adjustment of common standards. Here, we investigate the effects of different environmental factors and electrical load on the ageing behaviour of perovskite solar cells. On this basis, we comment on our perceived relevance of the different ways these are currently aged. We also demonstrate how the results of the experiments can be distorted and how to avoid the common pitfalls. We hope this work will initiate discussion on how to age perovskite solar cells and facilitate the development of consensus stability measurement protocols. Perovskite solar cells suffer from poor operational stability. Stability measurement conditions used in various studies differ widely. Here, Domanski et al. systematically study environmentally induced degradation in an effort to drive the community towards a consensus on how to age perovskite solar cells.