Hybrid inorganic–organic tandem solar cells for broad absorption of the solar spectrum

Abstract

We report the first hybrid tandem solar cell with solution processable active layers using colloidal PbS quantum dots (QDs) as the front subcell in combination with a polymer–fullerene rear subcell. Al/WO₃ is introduced as an interlayer, yielding an open circuit voltage (V_OC) equal to about 92% of the sum of the V_OC of the subcells. The device exhibits a power conversion efficiency of 1.8%. Optical simulations of various tandem configurations show that combining PbS QDs with small-bandgap polymers is a promising strategy to obtain tandem solar cells with a very broad absorption range and a high short circuit current.