Events

Metal-halide perovskites for photovoltaic and light-emitting devices*

September 15, 2015 at 4:30 pm/36-428

Sam Stranks
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Metal halide perovskites are exotic hybrid crystalline materials developed out of curiosity. Unexpectedly, solar cells incorporating these perovskites are rapidly emerging as serious contenders to rival the leading photovoltaic technologies. Power conversion efficiencies have jumped from 3% to over 20% (certified) in the last three years. Closely following the solar cell development, the light-emitting properties of perovskite semiconductors have also been reinvigorated. Here, I will give a general overview of the rapid progress in perovskite devices. I will present recent advances here and elsewhere to better understand the operation of the state-of-the-art solar cells and the properties that have delivered high performance light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and lasers. I will cover topics including charge carrier diffusion and recombination mechanisms, as well as ion migration and its potential impact on device performance and hysteresis. Understanding these processes is key to further development of the field and to bringing the perovskite technology to commercialization.

Sam Stranks is a Marie Curie Fellow based jointly at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Cambridge. He completed his PhD in 2012 as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University, working on carbon nanotube/polymer blends. He then worked as a post-doctoral researcher in Henry Snaith’s group at Oxford University where he was also a Junior Research Fellow at Worcester College. His research generally focuses on the optical and electronic properties of emerging photovoltaic and optoelectronic systems.

*This talk is the first of the Perovskites Seminar Series organized by Sam Stranks and sponsored by the Center for Excitonics. For more info contact Sam: stranks@mit.edu