Ferroelectric Solar Cells

The “Ferroelectric Solar Cells” project is a sub-project of an international research training group currently in its second funding phase. The aim here is to improve photovoltaic components through the use or incorporation of ferroelectric, lead-free perovskite materials. In particular, metal halides, metal oxides and metal-free perovskites have been and are being grown in the form of nanocrystals, single crystals or in polycrystalline form, with the specific aim of coupling ferroelectric and optoelectronic properties.

The project’s research question is whether the incorporation of ferroelectric materials into solar cells can offer advantages. Among other things, the generation of a photocurrent without the need to use a diode is being discussed. In this context, the ferroelectric materials can be incorporated as an active layer, an intermediate layer or as additives. A potential problem here is the fact that ferroelectric materials do not exhibit electrical conductivity, whilst conductive materials do not display ferroelectric effects. Consequently, a key current focus of the project is to identify new materials that strike a balance between ferroelectric and semiconducting properties and can also be processed into thin films. Whilst we have previously investigated metal halide perovskites for this purpose, we are currently favouring metal-free molecular halides.