☀️ Global Record: Triple-Junction Perovskite Solar Cell Pushes Efficiency to New Heights

Triple-junction perovskite solar cell efficiency record

Published: October 2025 — Original article on Tech Xplore

In a landmark breakthrough for clean energy technology, a team led by the University of Sydney has set a new global efficiency record for large-area triple-junction perovskite–perovskite–silicon tandem solar cells. Their device achieved a certified steady-state power conversion efficiency of 23.3% over a 16 cm² area, the highest ever reported for this class of solar cells.

On the smaller, 1 cm² scale, the team also reached 27.06% efficiency, pushing the boundaries of photovoltaic performance and durability. Perhaps even more impressively, this cell passed the rigorous International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) Thermal Cycling Test, surviving 200 cycles between −40 °C and 85 °C while retaining 95% of its original efficiency after 400+ hours of continuous light exposure.

🔬 Why Triple-Junction Perovskite–Silicon Tandems Matter

Conventional silicon solar cells are approaching their theoretical efficiency limit (the Shockley–Queisser limit of ~29%), leaving little room for further performance gains through silicon alone. Triple-junction perovskite tandems are a new strategy to overcome this ceiling. By stacking multiple light-absorbing layers — each tuned to capture a different segment of the solar spectrum — these cells can convert more sunlight into electricity with fewer thermalization losses.

In the Sydney team’s architecture, two perovskite layers of different bandgaps are stacked on top of a silicon layer. Each junction harvests light from a distinct part of the spectrum (high, medium, and low photon energies), enabling a synergistic increase in power conversion efficiency. This design builds on earlier dual-junction (perovskite–silicon) tandems, which already demonstrated efficiencies surpassing those of single-junction silicon.

⚙️ Engineering Breakthroughs Behind the Record

Led by Professor Anita Ho-Baillie, John Hooke Chair of Nanoscience at the University of Sydney, the team achieved the record by re-engineering both the perovskite chemistry and the triple-junction device architecture:

  • 🔸 Replacing the less stable methylammonium cation with rubidium, producing a perovskite lattice more resistant to defects and degradation.
  • 🔸 Substituting lithium fluoride with piperazinium dichloride for improved surface stability.
  • 🔸 Using gold nanoparticles — not continuous gold films — to connect the two perovskite junctions. Advanced transmission electron microscopy revealed their nanoscale structure, enabling optimized coverage for charge transport and light absorption.

These refinements yielded a device that not only excels in peak efficiency but also maintains performance under harsh thermal cycling and long-term illumination — key metrics for real-world deployment.

🌍 A Leap Toward Scalable, Low-Carbon Energy

Perovskite solar cells have long promised a combination of low manufacturing costs, lightweight form factors, and high power conversion efficiencies. Yet, scaling them up while ensuring stability has remained a critical hurdle. This work is the first to demonstrate a large-area triple-junction perovskite device rigorously tested and independently certified, signaling a major step toward commercial viability.

The research involved international collaboration between partners in China, Germany, and Slovenia. It builds upon years of global progress in perovskite photovoltaics, where tandem architectures are seen as the most promising pathway to next-generation solar panels that can exceed 30% efficiency while remaining affordable to produce.

Professor Ho-Baillie, who recently received the 2025 Eureka Prize for Sustainability Research, emphasized: “Perovskites are already showing us that we can push efficiencies beyond the limits of silicon alone. These advances mean we are moving closer to cheaper, more sustainable solar energy that will help power a low-carbon future.”

🔮 Outlook: Triple-Junction Cells Enter a New Era

The implications of this achievement extend far beyond the lab. If scalable, triple-junction perovskite–silicon tandems could enable solar farms to generate more power from the same surface area, reduce installation costs per watt, and accelerate the global transition to renewable energy. Their tunability could also allow for semi-transparent modules for building-integrated photovoltaics or lightweight flexible modules for portable applications.

With further advances in stability, encapsulation, and low-cost manufacturing, these cells may well define the next era of solar energy — one where efficiency records rapidly translate into commercial products.

Source: “Global efficiency record set for large, triple-junction perovskite solar cell” (2025, October 7). Tech Xplore. https://techxplore.com/news/2025-10-global-efficiency-large-triple-junction.html

💡 This article was prepared with the assistance of AI technologies.

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