Publication date: 22nd July 2026
Transparent Conducting Oxides (TCOs) sit at nearly every critical interface in perovskite–silicon tandem solar cells, governing optical coupling, charge extraction, and recombination, while introducing resistive, absorptive, and reflective losses that can each cost more than 2% absolute efficiency.
Beyond performance, TCO choice and quality can directly affect long-term device stability: microstructure and interfacial chemistry determine resistance to moisture ingress, ion migration, and damp-heat degradation, factors that are too often considered separately from efficiency optimization. In this talk, I will argue that TCOs deserve treatment as an important design parameter, alongside the carrier extraction and perovskite absorber itself, in the pursuit of tandem cells that are both highly efficient and operationally durable. I will discuss the materials physics trade-offs involved, current material limitations including reliance on scarce indium-based oxides, and emerging strategies (new dopants, multilayer architectures, and computational screening) aimed at simultaneously improving optoelectronic performance and long-term stability for sustainable deployment.
