Lead free bismuth perovskites for sustainable solar cells: advances, challenges and future perspectives

This review provides an inclusive analysis of lead-free perovskite materials, with a primary focus on bismuth-doped materials as suitable substitutes for photovoltaic applications. The implication of perovskite structures in solar technologies is encompassed in the article, confronting the environmental concerns linked with lead-based compounds. It illustrates the crucial need for lead-free substitutes, evaluating the challenges of displacing lead while preserving high efficiency, and exploring materials such as tin and bismuth. The review identifies the advantages of bismuth doping, including optimized stability, low toxicity, and augmented optical properties, and evaluates these benefits to those obtained by other agents like tin and antimony. Moreover, it demonstrates the role of hybrid organic–inorganic compounds in promoting the response and stability of solar cells. The synthesis techniques for bismuth-doped materials, including eco-friendly approaches like chemical vapor deposition and solution processing, are rigorously computed for their effect on material properties and photovoltaic effectiveness. Characterization approaches used to evaluate the structural, and electrical properties of bismuth-based systems are also reviewed. The paper quantifies the photovoltaic characteristics of these materials, while determining the drawbacks in grading up for commercial applications. Additionally, recent progressions in bismuth-doped compositions are deliberated, along with evolving trends in research and the potential for their integration with other renewable strategies. The review concludes with an outlook on the ecological and sustainability implications of incorporating bismuth-doped phases in large-scale energy systems.