Ian Rye-Carriegas

• BSc (Hons) Physics
• Investigating the effects of solar intensity on ionic conductivity in lead iodide perovskite thin films.

Sunlight, or solar energy, is a clean, renewable source of energy that is extremely important at this moment in time. As climate change is accelerating, demand for energy is rising and non-renewable energy resources are running out. However, it can be expensive to manufacture high efficiency solar panels that can tackle this problem. A new type of material called a perovskite can be used to make highly efficient solar panels very easily and at a fraction of the cost. In perovskite solar cells, unlike standard silicon solar cells, perovskites contain ions which hinder the performance of the solar panel and leads to JV hysteresis. Over the course of 8 weeks I will set-up and programme instruments to measure how the ions affect the efficiency and conductivity across low currents with varying solar intensity.

Funding source: Newcastle University

Project supervisor: Dr Pablo Docampo