Carbon-Based Materials Used for Perovskite Solar Cells

Organometal halide perovskite solar cells have become a superstar in the photovoltaic field over the past few years. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) has rapidly been boosted to a high reported value of 22.1%, which is even better than that of the commercialized multicrystalline silicon solar cells. However, to some extent, the low-cost and high-performance photovoltaic technique still suffers from stability and hysteresis issues. Without doubt, carbon-based materials (e.g., fullerene and its derivatives, graphene-related materials, carbon nanotubes, carbon paste) have been demonstrated to have positive effects on overcoming the above challenges, in cooperation with the optimizations in perovskite absorber layer, interface, and device structure. In this review, we will first introduce some fundamental principles of PSCs in terms of device structure and carbon-based materials. Then, the applications of various carbon-based materials in PSCs will be summarized, which are directly related to the potentiality for exploitation in device performance and stability. Finally, we will draw conclusions and highlight some promising research directions for carbon material-based PSCs.