Perovskites: the future of PV? - The smarter-E Podcast
Perovskites: The Race for the Future of PV?
The smarter E Podcast Episode 258 | 25 June 2026 | Language: English
This episode, which was recorded in June 2026 at the “Tandem PV Workshop” in Berlin, explores one of the most exciting areas of research in solar technology: perovskite-based tandem photovoltaics. In this discussion, Rutger Schlatmann and Angelika Harter explain why perovskites could enable the next major step towards higher solar efficiency – and what still needs to happen before the technology reaches commercial mass production.
The first part addresses the question of why silicon-perovskite tandem solar cells are of such interest to researchers and industry. Rutger Schlatmann explains how conventional silicon technology is reaching its physical efficiency limits and why applying a perovskite layer to silicon opens up a path to significantly higher output.
In the second half of the episode, Angelika Harter discusses the transition from record-breaking laboratory results to commercially viable solar products. She reports on insights from the ‘Tandem PV Workshop’ recently held in Berlin, where the industry’s focus is increasingly shifting from simply achieving higher efficiencies towards understanding and improving stability, scalability and reproducibility.
In addition, journalist Jonathan Gifford and the two HZB colleagues discuss new possibilities for perovskite technologies beyond conventional solar modules – including flexible PV, indoor applications and space technologies – and explore why the next five years could be crucial for bringing the first generation of commercial perovskite products to market.
- Perovskite triple-junction solar cells: Even more efficient with GO/SAM bilayersPerovskite semiconductors efficiently convert sunlight into electrical energy; they are also inexpensive and extremely lightweight. A team at HZB has developed a triple-junction solar cell comprising different perovskite semiconductors, with a novel bilayer of graphene oxide (GO) and a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) as the hole conductor. This bilayer significantly increases both efficiency and long-term stability. The efficiency of the novel perovskite triple-junction solar cell is 27.3% and shows hardly any decline even after more than 770 hours of operation. The study has been published in the renowned journal Joule.
- Green Deal Ukraїna at the Ukraine Recovery ConferenceEnd of June, the Ukraine Recovery Conference (UCR2026) took place in Gdańsk, Poland. Unlike previous editions, URC2026 introduced a dedicated Energy Platform, jointly organised by the Ministry of Energy of Ukraine and the Ministry of Climate and Environment of Poland, which brought together energy-related discussions, announcements, and side events in one place, increasing the visibility and coordination of key energy topics. Green Deal Ukraїna, an initiative coordinated by HZB, organised three events on the sidelines of URC on research and energy topics as part of the conference.
- CIGS-perovskite tandem cell achieves record efficiency of 25.5 %A Berlin-based team from HZB and Center for the Science of Materials Berlin (CSMB) at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin has set a new record for a tandem solar cell. Using a combination of a CIGS semiconductor layer and perovskite, along with several optimised intermediate layers, they were able to convert 25.5% of sunlight into electrical energy. The previous record for this combination of materials and this size of cell stood at 24.6%. The new record has been certified and is visible in the prestigious Solar Cell Efficiency Tables (the "Green Tables"), which serve as the definitive ledger for the global photovoltaic community.