Spectral accessibility tuning through perovskite quantum dots for up-/down-converting photovoltaic applications: a review

Abstract

Conventional photovoltaic technologies have several limitations, including efficiency, performance degradation, limited solar spectrum conversion, and high manufacturing cost. As a result, they are insufficient to satisfy the growing global need for renewable energy, which has stimulated significant research interest in the search for advanced materials for light-harvesting applications. Owing to the excellent features such as bandgap (E<inf>g</inf>) tunability, high absorption coefficients (α), defect tolerance, and long carrier diffusion lengths (L<inf>d</inf>), halide perovskites have emerged as potential candidates for next-generation solar cells. Despite surpassing 25% power conversion efficiency, perovskite solar cells face challenges like limited ultraviolet near-infrared (UV-NIR) spectrum utilization and poor short-term environmental stability, hindering their practical development. This review focuses on the detailed literature on several types of perovskites and perovskite quantum dots (PQDs) as advanced materials for optoelectronic applications. Emphasis is on their synthesis, structural and optical features, optoelectrical applications, and stability enhancement strategies, including NIR and UV solar radiation strategies. Hence, the primary focus is given on the spectral modification techniques for photon up-conversion (UC) and down-conversion (DC) by the PQDs, which are promising approaches to enhance the conventional efficiency limits by accessing the UV and NIR photons. This review systematically addresses the recent research and developments in the spectral engineering of bulk and quantum dot perovskites. Additionally, the key mechanisms of UC and DC, material advancement, and property alterations are discussed in detail. Finally, this review delivers an overview of the present challenges and future research directions for perovskites and PQDs to utilize full-spectrum solar energy harvesting and significantly enhance their power conversion efficiency (PCE). This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry, 2025