Manuscript Topics

Solar Cells are widely investigated owing to the efficient photon-to-electricity conversion by using a vertical p-i-n multilayered structure. However, there is a major intrinsic energy loss in the light absorbing layer, which results in a trade-off between the open-circuit voltage (VOC) and short-circuit current density (JSC) and thereby existing a theoretically highest power conversion efficiency (PCE) of about 34%. Thanks to the developments of material science and fabrication technology, Si, GaAs, InP, and CdTe semiconductors have been used to realize the high PCE values which is ranging from 20% to 27%. The potential loss and carrier recombination are the two main mechanisms, which limit the realization of the efficient solar panels. On the other hand, the fabrication cost and scalability also influence their commercialization progress.

Fortunately, the use of low bandgap organic materials can replace the above mentioned inorganic semiconductors as the light absorbing layer of solar cells mainly owing to the high absorption coefficients and low fabrication cost. P-type polymers, p-type small molecules, and dyes are the mostly used light absorbing materials, which are classified into the organic photovoltaic (OPV) and dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSC). To effectively collect the photo-generated electrons from the dissociated excitons at the p-n interfaces, a blended thin-film structure and a mesoporous TiO2 thin film have been demonstrated to realize the highly efficient OPVs and DSSCs, respectively. Up to now, the PCE values of OPVs and DSSCs are lower than 20% mainly owing to the lower VOC and fill factor (FF) values. In other words, the potential loss and carrier recombination in the active layer limits the improvement in the PCE. On the other hand, the solution-processed perovskite materials have been used to replace the dyes (p-type polymers) in the DSSC (OPV) device architecture owing to the superior optoelectronic properties, which can achieve the high PCE of over 25%. However, the photovoltaic performance and device lifespan of the OPVs, DSSCs, and perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have still room for improvement.

The main goal of this Focus Issue is to showcase novel findings and cutting-edge advances in solution-processed semiconductor thin films and device structures, which are driving the realization of stable, highly efficient and low cost solar cells. This focus covers from fundamental research to practical applications and from experimental studies to numerical simulations.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:
1. Developments of small molecules or polymers for OPVs
2. Developments of dyes for DSSCs
3. Developments of mixed perovskite thin films for PSCs
4. Developments of inorganic semiconductors for highly efficient solar cells
5. Developments of light absorbing materials, hole transport materials, and/or electron transport materials for solar cells
6. Flexible solar cells
7. Indoor photovoltaics

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