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This work demonstrates that unetched substrates can be reliably used in perovskite solar cell (PSC) fabrication. Chemical etching and laser patterning of the bottom electrodes are time- and resource-consuming processes. In particular, when testing novel conductive substrate materials, such as metallic or bio-based substrates, etching or patterning could be entirely unfeasible or could require significant process optimization. Avoiding these steps could accelerate research on PSCs, yet the literature shows no attempts to override these steps. Here, PSCs were fabricated and characterized using three-dimensionally printed holders with spring-loaded pins. We show that devices made on unetched substrates have, on average, a similar performance to those made on etched substrates (16 ± 1% and 16.0 ± 0.7%, respectively). Our study provides a new strategy for fabricating PSCs, particularly when etching and laser patterning are impractical.

The recently introduced perovskite solar cell (PSC) technology is a promising candidate for providing low-cost energy for future demands. However, one major concern with the technology can be traced back to morphological defects in the electron selective layer (ESL), which deteriorates the solar cell performance. Pinholes in the ESL may lead to an increased surface recombination rate for holes, if the perovskite absorber layer is in contact with the fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrate via the pinholes. In this work, we used sol-gel-derived mesoporous TiO2 thin films prepared by block co-polymer templating in combination with dip coating as a model system for investigating the effect of ESL pinholes on the photovoltaic performance of planar heterojunction PSCs. We studied TiO2 films with different porosities and film thicknesses, and observed that the induced pinholes only had a minor impact on the device performance. This suggests that having narrow pinholes with a diameter of about 10 nm in the ESL is in fact not detrimental for the device performance and can even, to some extent improve their performance. A probable reason for this is that the narrow pores in the ordered structure do not allow the perovskite crystals to form interconnected pathways to the underlying FTO substrate. However, for ultrathin (~20 nm) porous layers, an incomplete ESL surface coverage of the FTO layer will further deteriorate the device performance.

The threat of toxic substances such as heavy metals to public health and wildlife has led to an increasing public awareness. Different techniques for neutralizing the toxic effects of heavy metals in wastewater have been used. Here, we prepared a new and efficient type of adsorbent, zinc oxide–graphene nanocomposite (ZnO–Gr), via a green method to remove Ni (II) ions from aqueous solutions. A facile microwave-assisted hydrothermal technique in the presence of an ionic liquid, 1-hexyl-3-methylimidazolium bis (trifluoromethylsulfonyl) imide [C 6 mim] [NTf 2 ], was used to prepare ZnO–Gr. The synergistic effect between graphene nanosheets and ZnO nanoparticles in this new adsorbent for Ni (II) ions caused a maximum adsorption capacity of 66.7 mg g −1 at room temperature which is much higher than that of graphene nanosheets (3.8 mg g −1 ) and other carbonaceous nanomaterials used as an adsorbent in the literature. The maximum desorption percentage (90.32%) was achieved at pH 3.6. By thermodynamic study, we found that the adsorption of this heavy metal ion on ZnO–Gr was spontaneous (Δ G ° = −6.14 kJ mol −1 ) and endothermic (Δ H ° = 53.31 kJ mol −1 ) with entropy change of Δ S ° = 199.45 J K −1  mol − 1 .

The recently introduced perovskite solar cell (PSC) technology is a promising candidate for providing low-cost energy for future demands. However, one major concern with the technology can be traced back to morphological defects in the electron selective layer (ESL), which deteriorates the solar cell performance. Pinholes in the ESL may lead to an increased surface recombination rate for holes, if the perovskite absorber layer is in contact with the fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) substrate via the pinholes. In this work, we used sol-gel-derived mesoporous TiO thin films prepared by block co-polymer templating in combination with dip coating as a model system for investigating the effect of ESL pinholes on the photovoltaic performance of planar heterojunction PSCs. We studied TiO films with different porosities and film thicknesses, and observed that the induced pinholes only had a minor impact on the device performance. This suggests that having narrow pinholes with a diameter of about 10 nm in the ESL is in fact not detrimental for the device performance and can even, to some extent improve their performance. A probable reason for this is that the narrow pores in the ordered structure do not allow the perovskite crystals to form interconnected pathways to the underlying FTO substrate. However, for ultrathin (~20 nm) porous layers, an incomplete ESL surface coverage of the FTO layer will further deteriorate the device performance.