Simplified Architecture of a Fully Printable Perovskite Solar Cell Using a Thick Zirconia Layer

A fully printable, hole-conductor-free perovskite solar cell with a simple and low-cost fabrication route and high stability is well placed for commercialization. We aim to simplify the fabrication process of these solar cells by replacing the mesoporous TiO₂ (meso-TiO₂) layer with a thick ZrO₂ layer. This new architecture required only three steps: screen-printing first the compact TiO₂ (c-TiO₂), second the mesoporous ZrO₂ layer (for perovskite infiltration), and third the carbon electrode. To improve the solar cell performance of the architecture, the c-TiO₂ and ZrO₂ printing process are optimized. After systematic optimization of these processes, we found that the double-printing of the c-TiO₂ layer and an increase of the ZrO₂ later thickness from 1.4 to 2.1 μm in the device structure gives an optimized efficiency of 9.69 %, which is comparable to that of standard carbon devices with meso-TiO₂. This method provides an approach to reduce the fabrication time and thermal budget for fully printable solar cells.