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

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.