Advancements in Perovskite Solar Cell Stability: Mechanisms, Strategies, and Prospects for Commercialisation
Joy Ogunwuyi
Department of Physics, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria.
Adebayo Adeleye
Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria.
Oluwakunle Ogunsakin
Department of Geology, Geological Engineering and Petroleum Engineering, Missouri University of Science and Technology, Rolla, Missouri, United States.
Peace Folarin
Department of Physics, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria.
Chukwuebuka Paul Chinwuba
Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Nigeria.
Samuel Ayanwumi
Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Yaba College of Technology, Yaba, Lagos, Nigeria.
George Akpowu
Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria.
Michael Adesanya
Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Ogun State, Nigeria.
Alexander Shobogun
Department of Chemistry, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria.
Alfred Desmond Obande
Department of Mechatronics and Robotics Engineering, MIREA Russian Technological University, Russia.
Alfred Emmanuel Idoko
Department of Electrical/Electronics Engineering, University of Abuja, Nigeria.
Emmanuel Anegbe
Department of Chemistry and Chemical Technologies, University of Calabria.
Saviour Tertindi Tile
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Ilorin, Ilorin, Nigeria.
Boluwatife Oluwasegun *
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Nigeria.
Olorunfemi Joshua
University of Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria.
Clement Akutam Azure
Department of Physical Science, Faculty of Liberal Arts and Science, Eastern New Mexico University, Portales, New Mexico, USA.
Opeyemi Akanbi
Department of Physics, Ladoke Akintola University of Technology, Ogbomoso, Oyo State, Nigeria.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) rank among the most consequential photovoltaic technologies to emerge this century, having reached certified power conversion efficiencies above 26% for single-junction devices within barely two decades of their first demonstration. Yet this progress has been shadowed by a more stubborn problem: perovskite devices still do not hold up well under the moisture, heat, and sustained illumination they would face outside the laboratory, and this gap in operational stability remains the chief barrier to commercial deployment. This review takes stock of what is currently known about why perovskites degrade and what has been done to slow that degradation, drawing on peer-reviewed literature published mainly between 2018 and February 2026. The dominant degradation pathways—moisture ingress, thermal stress, light-induced phase transformations, and ion migration—are examined both individually and in terms of how they interact with one another. Compositional strategies are assessed in turn, including mixed-cation and mixed-halide formulations, all-inorganic perovskite variants, and reduced-dimensionality quasi-two-dimensional structures, each weighed for its particular trade-offs. Interface and surface passivation methods, improvements to charge-transport layers, and architectural developments—most notably the inverted planar configuration and tandem cell designs—are then reviewed for what they contribute to efficiency and, separately, to durability. The article also considers the practical difficulties of moving from laboratory-scale cells to manufacturable modules, and the parallel effort to establish standardised stability testing protocols that the field can actually agree on. Finally, it looks at two emerging directions: lead-free perovskite chemistries and the use of machine learning to speed up materials discovery. The overall picture that emerges is one of substantial progress, but reaching the twenty-five-year lifetimes expected of commercial photovoltaic modules will require materials, interface, and encapsulation advances to be brought together more coherently, and judged against testing standards the whole field can trust.
Keywords: Perovskite solar cells, operational stability, degradation mechanisms, passivation, compositional engineering, tandem photovoltaics, encapsulation, ion migration.