{"title":"Antisolvent seeding of self-assembled monolayers for flexible monolithic perovskite/Cu(In,Ga)Se2 tandem solar cells","authors":"Zhiqin Ying, Shiqian Su, Xin Li, Guoxin Chen, Chongyan Lian, Dikai Lu, Meili Zhang, Xuchao Guo, Hao Tian, Yihan Sun, Linhui Liu, Chuanxiao Xiao, Yuheng Zeng, Chao Zhang, Xi Yang, Jichun Ye","doi":"10.1038/s41560-025-01760-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01760-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Flexible perovskite/copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) tandem solar cells hold great promise for lightweight, high-efficiency applications, yet achieving high-quality perovskite top cells on the rough surfaces of flexible CIGS bottom cells remains challenging. Accordingly, we developed an antisolvent-seeding strategy that decouples self-assembly monolayers (SAMs) adsorption from dissolution, while integrating perovskite seeding. A high-polarity solvent prevents SAMs clustering during dissolution, while a low-polarity antisolvent promotes high-density SAMs formation during adsorption. Additionally, a pre-mixed seed layer further improves perovskite wettability, crystallinity and adhesion. These advancements enable the fabrication of a 1.09-cm<sup>2</sup> flexible monolithic perovskite/CIGS tandem with a stabilized efficiency of 24.6% (certified 23.8%), comparable to the best-performing rigid perovskite/CIGS tandems and representing one of the highest efficiencies among flexible thin-film solar cells. The flexible devices also demonstrate excellent durability, retaining over 90% of initial performance after 320 h of operation and 3,000 bending cycles at a 1-cm radius.</p>","PeriodicalId":19073,"journal":{"name":"Nature Energy","volume":"29 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":56.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143846549","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature EnergyPub Date : 2025-04-18DOI: 10.1038/s41560-025-01766-0
{"title":"An antisolvent-seeding approach to produce stable flexible tandem solar cells","authors":"","doi":"10.1038/s41560-025-01766-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01766-0","url":null,"abstract":"An antisolvent-seeding strategy enhanced self-assembled monolayer formation, enabling the growth of high-quality perovskite top cells on flexible Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2 bottom cells. A 1 cm2 flexible tandem solar cell produced using this approach achieved a certified efficiency of 23.8% and is photostable and mechanically durable.","PeriodicalId":19073,"journal":{"name":"Nature Energy","volume":"24 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":56.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143846481","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature EnergyPub Date : 2025-04-17DOI: 10.1038/s41560-025-01758-0
Jonathan G. Love, Ian D. R. Mackinnon
{"title":"Accelerating commercial deployment with hydrogen system testbeds","authors":"Jonathan G. Love, Ian D. R. Mackinnon","doi":"10.1038/s41560-025-01758-0","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01758-0","url":null,"abstract":"Hydrogen system testbeds powered by renewables at kilowatt–megawatt scale reduce technical and financial risk by providing evidence to inform decisions on economic viability for investments at commercial scale. Future-proofing these testbeds to ‘plug and play’ new components or technologies may accelerate low-regret uptake of innovation.","PeriodicalId":19073,"journal":{"name":"Nature Energy","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":56.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143841776","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature EnergyPub Date : 2025-04-11DOI: 10.1038/s41560-025-01753-5
{"title":"Combining the use of CO2 and H2 networks benefits carbon management in Europe","authors":"","doi":"10.1038/s41560-025-01753-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01753-5","url":null,"abstract":"An analysis of European carbon management shows that CO2 and H2 networks can complement each other. Transporting CO2 and H2 from low-cost regions with high availability to areas that process the two molecules into clean fuels or sequester CO2 could reduce total energy system costs by up to 5.3%.","PeriodicalId":19073,"journal":{"name":"Nature Energy","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":56.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143819405","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature EnergyPub Date : 2025-04-11DOI: 10.1038/s41560-025-01752-6
Fabian Hofmann, Christoph Tries, Fabian Neumann, Elisabeth Zeyen, Tom Brown
{"title":"H2 and CO2 network strategies for the European energy system","authors":"Fabian Hofmann, Christoph Tries, Fabian Neumann, Elisabeth Zeyen, Tom Brown","doi":"10.1038/s41560-025-01752-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01752-6","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Hydrogen and carbon dioxide transport can play an essential role in climate-neutral energy systems. Hydrogen networks serve regions with high energy demand, whereas emissions are transported away in carbon dioxide networks. For the synthesis of carbonaceous fuels, it is less clear which input should be transported: hydrogen to carbon point sources or carbon to low-cost hydrogen. Here we explore both networks’ potential synergies and competition in cost-optimal carbon-neutral European energy systems. In direct comparison, a hydrogen network is more cost effective than a carbon network, as it serves to transport hydrogen to demand and to point sources of carbon for utilization. However, in hybrid scenarios where both networks are present, the carbon network effectively complements the hydrogen network, promoting carbon capture from distributed biomass and reducing reliance on direct air capture. The layouts of the hydrogen and carbon dioxide networks are robust if the climate target is tightened to be net negative.</p>","PeriodicalId":19073,"journal":{"name":"Nature Energy","volume":"22 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":56.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143819174","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature EnergyPub Date : 2025-04-10DOI: 10.1038/s41560-025-01756-2
Tong Wu, Shuo Chen, Zhenghua Su, Zi Wang, Ping Luo, Zhuanghao Zheng, Jingting Luo, Hongli Ma, Xianghua Zhang, Guangxing Liang
{"title":"Heat treatment in an oxygen-rich environment to suppress deep-level traps in Cu2ZnSnS4 solar cell with 11.51% certified efficiency","authors":"Tong Wu, Shuo Chen, Zhenghua Su, Zi Wang, Ping Luo, Zhuanghao Zheng, Jingting Luo, Hongli Ma, Xianghua Zhang, Guangxing Liang","doi":"10.1038/s41560-025-01756-2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01756-2","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Sulfide kesterite Cu<sub>2</sub>ZnSnS<sub>4</sub> (CZTS) is a competitive photovoltaic material, especially for multijunction solar cells. However, the device power conversion efficiency has remained stagnant for years. Deep-level defects, such as sulfur vacancies (V<sub>S</sub>), cause serious non-radiative recombination of charge carriers. Here we propose a passivation strategy for V<sub>S</sub> through the heat treatment of the CdS/CZTS heterojunction in an oxygen-rich environment. In this process, V<sub>S</sub> are occupied by oxygen atoms, suppressing V<sub>S</sub> defects. In addition, the diffusion of Cd ions to the CZTS absorber layer, and the formation of positive Na–O and Sn–O complexes can passivate related defects. These effects led to a reduced charge recombination and favourable band alignment. We demonstrate a certified efficiency of 11.51% for air-solution-processed CZTS solar cells (bandgap of 1.5 eV) without any extrinsic cation alloying. The study offers insights into defect passivation and performance improvement mechanism of kesterite solar cells.</p>","PeriodicalId":19073,"journal":{"name":"Nature Energy","volume":"59 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":56.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143813847","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature EnergyPub Date : 2025-04-10DOI: 10.1038/s41560-025-01755-3
Joseph Fichera, Paul Sutherland, Martin J. Luby, Varun Rai, Matthew Zachary
{"title":"Ratepayer-backed bonds for utility financings","authors":"Joseph Fichera, Paul Sutherland, Martin J. Luby, Varun Rai, Matthew Zachary","doi":"10.1038/s41560-025-01755-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01755-3","url":null,"abstract":"Utilities are increasingly using ratepayer-backed bonds (RBBs) to provide financial protection against extreme weather and more broadly, the energy transition. Consequently, we outline best practices for public utility commissions and ratepayer advocates to reduce financing costs and protect ratepayers in the execution of RBBs.","PeriodicalId":19073,"journal":{"name":"Nature Energy","volume":"36 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":56.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143813603","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature EnergyPub Date : 2025-04-09DOI: 10.1038/s41560-025-01750-8
{"title":"Rooftop solar can reduce energy insecurity","authors":"","doi":"10.1038/s41560-025-01750-8","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01750-8","url":null,"abstract":"Results from a large-scale survey of low-to-moderate income households in the USA show that the installation of rooftop solar panels decreased energy insecurity by 15–46% across five different measures. Policies that support the uptake of rooftop solar could therefore be used to reduce the incidence of energy insecurity.","PeriodicalId":19073,"journal":{"name":"Nature Energy","volume":"37 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":56.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143805627","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature EnergyPub Date : 2025-04-08DOI: 10.1038/s41560-025-01754-4
Kaiyue Zhao, Ningyao Xiang, Yu-Qi Wang, Jinyu Ye, Zihan Jin, Linke Fu, Xiaoxia Chang, Dong Wang, Hai Xiao, Bingjun Xu
{"title":"A molecular design strategy to enhance hydrogen evolution on platinum electrocatalysts","authors":"Kaiyue Zhao, Ningyao Xiang, Yu-Qi Wang, Jinyu Ye, Zihan Jin, Linke Fu, Xiaoxia Chang, Dong Wang, Hai Xiao, Bingjun Xu","doi":"10.1038/s41560-025-01754-4","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01754-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Design of electrode–aqueous interfaces for hydrogen evolution reactions (HERs) is crucial to developing improved electrolysers. Modifications at the surface of electrodes have been employed to accelerate HER, but effective guiding principles are lacking. Here we establish a molecular design strategy to enhance HER activity in alkaline media by up to 50 times by introducing an organic overlayer on Pt electrodes. We find that enhancement of HER activity by organic adsorbates is correlated with their binding energies to Pt electrodes; binding energy could be tuned by changing the number of aromatic rings and hydrophilicity of the adsorbates. Density functional theory calculations suggest that the overlayer led to a decrease in the <i>d</i>-band centre, resulting in weakened H adsorption, which mitigated its overbinding on Pt. Importantly, we demonstrate the enhancing effect of the 2,2′-bipyrimidine overlayer on Pt/C in a water electrolyser with a membrane electrode assembly configuration, confirming its effectiveness on the device level.</p>","PeriodicalId":19073,"journal":{"name":"Nature Energy","volume":"59 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":56.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143798275","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature EnergyPub Date : 2025-04-08DOI: 10.1038/s41560-025-01739-3
Jianyu Gu, Andrew Glaws, Dylan Harrison-Atlas, Pietro Bortolotti, Kenneth Kaliski, Anthony Lopez
{"title":"The impact of sound ordinances on the land-based wind technical potential of the United States","authors":"Jianyu Gu, Andrew Glaws, Dylan Harrison-Atlas, Pietro Bortolotti, Kenneth Kaliski, Anthony Lopez","doi":"10.1038/s41560-025-01739-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41560-025-01739-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p>The rapid rise of sound ordinances has affected wind energy siting across state, county and local jurisdictions. Quantifying this impact on wind energy potential is required for effective energy planning. However, complex turbine sound modelling combined with evolving policies have contributed to limited understanding of these policies’ impact on national wind technical potential. Here we develop an approach to evaluate wind turbine sound profiles across the United States and calculate setback distances from residential structures to translate sound-related policies into spatial turbine siting criteria. Compared to a baseline scenario that ignores sound, we find an 8% reduction in wind energy capacity when accounting for existing sound ordinances. Further, extrapolating a 45-A-weighted decibel (dBA) limit nationwide shows a 29% decline, disproportionately taken from high-quality and low-cost wind capacity. This reveals sound ordinances as a major factor in determining wind technical potential that could challenge US decarbonization goals reliant on wind energy.</p>","PeriodicalId":19073,"journal":{"name":"Nature Energy","volume":"217 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":56.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143798276","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"材料科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}