Performance Optimization of MgHfS3 Chalcogenide Perovskite Solar Cells Using SCAPS-1D

Abstract

In this work, magnesium hafnium sulfide MgHfS3 perovskite solar cells have been investigated using numerical modelling and simulation. Perovskite solar cells have received increasing recognition owing to their promising light-harvesting properties. The modelling and simulation of MgHfS3 was successfully carried out using the Solar cell capacitance simulator (SCAPS-1D) software. Consequently, this study developed a base model structure of FTO/TiO2/MgHfS3/Cu2O/Au and subsequently explored the effect of varying device layer properties such as absorber thickness, total and interface defect densities with a view of optimizing these parameters for better device performance. Simulating the base model gave the performance characteristics of 0.99 V, 25.21 mA/cm2, 57.59%, and 14.36% which are the open-circuit voltage (Voc), short-circuit current density (Jsc), fill factor (FF) and PCE respectively. The optimal absorber thickness was found to be 300 nm and the optimum density of defects for both TiO2/Absorber interface and Absorber/Cu2O interface are respectively 1010 cm-3 and 109 cm-3. The obtained optimized PV parameters are Voc = 1.2629 V, Jsc = 24.44 mA/cm2, FF = 89.46% and PCE = 27.61%. Also, it was established that increasing the device temperature beyond 300K enhanced the short circuit current while other performance characteristics gradually declined. The obtained results suggest that chalcogenide MgHfS3 is a potential absorber material candidate for the production of cheap and very efficient environment-friendly perovskite solar cells.