The Solar Underdog That Could Rival Perovskite

Perovskite solar cells are smashing efficiency records and starting to hit the market, but what if the real future of solar is a material you’ve probably never heard of?

It’s called kesterite, and new research suggests it could match perovskites’ efficiency without any toxic lead in the stack. That could mean even cheaper, cleaner, and more efficient solar panels for your home down the road.

Scientists just simulated a version of kesterite that could reach a 33.56% efficiency, brushing up against the theoretical limit for solar cells.

The kicker? Kesterite is durable, where perovskite struggles to survive the great outdoors.

With new kesterite efficiency records set this past year… could this underdog race ahead of perovskite and reshape the future of solar?

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Chapters

• 00:00 - Intro
• 02:14 - Kesterite Composition & Competency
• 04:10 - Kesterite's Model Efficiency
• 06:15 - Recombination
• 09:41 - Production Methods
• 10:59 - Conclusion