A Perspective of Antimony Chalcogenide Photovoltaics toward Commercialization

Recent developments in antimony chalcogenide (Sb2X3, X = S, Se, or SxSe1-x) solar cells attract significant scientific and technological interest in the renewable energy community. Over a relatively short period, the efficiency of Sb2X3 solar cells exhibits remarkable growth, escalating from 0.66% in 2000 to 10.75% in 2023. This substantial improvement suggests the potential of Sb2X3 solar cells for commercial applications. It is essential to discuss the prospects of Sb2X3 solar cells for commercial applications, yet there is no discussion on this. In this review, the potential of Sb2X3 solar cells is systematically assessed for industrialization from two key perspectives: the basic properties of Sb2X3 materials (including toxicity, physicochemical stability, and cost) and the device performance (including large area, efficiency, levelized cost of energy, and operational stability). Additionally, an outlook on the future development trends of Sb2X3 solar cells toward the potential commercialization is also provided. Also, the insights gained from this review can be applied to other emerging solar cell technologies as well such as Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)(4), GeSe, etc.

Automated summary

Recent developments in antimony chalcogenide solar cells have shown remarkable growth in efficiency, reaching 10.75% in 2023 from 0.66% in 2000. This review systematically assesses the potential of Sb2X3 solar cells for commercial applications, considering the properties of Sb2X3 materials and device performance. The insights gained from this review can also be applied to other emerging solar cell technologies.