As far as the replacement of fossil fuels with more environmentally friendly options is concerned, hydrogen is considered as the most promising source of energy. Currently, hydrogen is mainly produced through the method of methane reforming. This method requires the utilisation of catalysts made of precious metals. This master's degree thesis therefore investigates perovskite materials SmCoO3, Sm0,8Ca0,2CoO2,9, SmCo0,8Al0,2O3 and Sm0,8Ca0,2Co0,8Al0,2O2,9, which could be utilised as catalysts in the production of hydrogen by methane reforming. Methane reformation occurs on the surface of a catalyst. Therefore, it is desirable to ensure that the specific surface area of a catalyst material is as large as possible. For that reason, the aforementioned perovskite materials were prepared by two sol-gel methods, which are expected to create perovskites with large specific surface areas. It was investigated in the course of the work how the method of synthesis affects the structure and catalytic properties of individual materials. The SmCo0,8Al0,2O3 material prepared by a sol-gel synthesis with propylene oxide as a gelation agent demonstrated the best results - the measurement of catalytic activity showed that the methane conversion had achieved the value of 99%.

This work studies the subject of perovskite solar cells. The structure of perovskites is described along with a portion of photovoltaics history that led to the employment of perovskites as absorpsion layers. Further, methods of measurement for solar cells such as impedance spectroscopy, photospectroscopy and load characteristics are summarized. Lastly there is a description of already done analytics of perovskite solar cells with the summary of the results. In the practical part, there are measurements made to find out any effect of cell topology or light source wavelength on the cell performance.

This work deals with preparation of layers of ceramic materials – perovskites. The introductory part includes general characteristics concerning structure, properties and use of this materials. In details then there is described method of their preparation, namely Pechini´s syntheses, which are most widely used. Optimum molar ratio of components is discussed, in the sense of what compositions lead to creation of perovskite structures. Influence of this parameter on rheological properties of precursory gels is described in the end of the first part of work. In experimental section there are described preparations of gels, which are prepared via reaction between citric acid and ethylene glycol and gels, which are prepared by Pechini´s synthesis. Rheological properties of prepared gels (density, viscosity and surface tension) and besides determination of amount of nitrates in gels are characterized. Temperature dependence of viscosity of gels, that are prepared by reaction of citric acid and ethylene glycol are determined. In final part successful preparations of perovskite layers is shown on ceramic substrate. This layers are observed by means of light optical microscope and scanning electron microscope.

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have shown great potential for the future of solar powered energy production. They are however not completely flawless, and one of their more disadvantageous properties are their relatively slow response time. The Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Uppsala University have an interest in the ability to quickly measure the response time of PSCs for further development of optoelectronics. The purpose of this project was to provide an instrument with the ability to easily perform these measurements. The instrument was to be controlled by code from a computer which via usb connected to a microcontroller connected to the rest of the circuit. The electrical circuit was first constructed on breadboards for testing and optimisations, to later construct a circuit board which would neatly fit the entire circuit in a small space. The microcontroller was an Arduino NANO which sampled the current through the PSC at a rate of 33 kHz, which was slower than initially intended. It was however decided that the sample rate was sufficient for the application.

The world is facing a climate crisis and to be able to solve it society needs to decrease the use of fossil fuels and find renewable alternatives. Solar energy is a great contender for a renewable energy source since it can be harvested for eternal time. One of the problems with the solar cells available today is that they are more expensive than fossil alternatives, and the process of making them still uses a lot of resources and energy. However, in the last decade an alternative has arisen; perovskite solar cells. Due to the fact that perovskite solar cell production uses less energy and resources than the current silicon solar cell, perovskite solar cells are more cost effective. The main problem with perovskite solar cells is that they are too unstable and do not last very long. One way to stabilize them is to introduce one more cation and make hybrid perovskites. The purpose of this project was to synthesize a perovskite material with the chemical formula AA’PbI3 (A = Cs, A’ = dimethylammonium or ethylammonium) to see if any of the compositions would generate a stable black cubic phase, which is the optimal phase of the perovskite. Mesoporous N-I-P solar cells were created by a layer by layer deposition method. The perovskite layer was added using a spin-coater to deposit the perovskite solution. The films were then characterized using XRD and UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy. Due to the coronavirus pandemic of 2020, the hole transport material and gold electrode were not added to the solar cell. As a consequence of this, not all of the compositions were synthesised which also means that the results are not conclusive. It was observed that all of the films were yellow, which indicates that none of the perovskites achieved a cubic structure. An explanation could be that some parts of the synthesis needs to be done inside a glove box where the environmental variables like humidity could be controlled. The XRDs show that some films had the expected perovskite composition, while some perovskites had decomposed into its starting materials. For hybrid components and pure ethylammonium perovskite film it was harder to confirm our conclusion since no characterization of single crystals was available for these components. However, it was determined that the addition of cesium did make the perovskites more stable.

The thesis discusses the problematics of perovskite solar cells. The introduction deals with the history of the solar cells as the next part is dedicated to generations of them as well as to their principle and the variables measured in photovoltaic cells. The next part deals with perovskites, their properties and structure. Later the part about perovskite solar cells follows. The last part is dedicated to experiments which were executed on samples of perovskite solar cells.

The thesis is about the problematics of perovskite, production of perovskite structure and measurment of photovoltaic cells. The introduction deals with material properties and sctructure of perovskite. There is explained a problem of perovskit photovoltaic cells and production of perovskite structure. Then the measurement methods are explained, which are used for evaluation of photovoltaic cells properties.

The Master‘s thesis deals with the topic of perovskite solar cells with the main focus on the materials used for the active layer. In the introductory part, the electrical and optical properties of halide perovskites are described and specific examples of perovskite crystals are introduced. The description of impedance and photoimpedance measurement methods used for characterization of perovskite solar cells is also included in the thesis. The measurement of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy was conducted on four perovskite crystals and equivalent circuit was formed to fit the obtained data. Parameters of the circuit elements were acquired using the fitting method and were further evaluated in experimental part of this thesis.

This thesis deals with the study of the lifetime of charge carriers in perovskite single crystals. The principle of perovskite solar cells is formulated, their main structures are characterized and the history of the development of perovskite solar cells is summarized, especially in terms of efficiency. The properties of perovskite single crystals with perovskite solar cells are compared. For measurement purposes, transient methods, impedance spectroscopy, load characteristics and the dependence of sensitivity and photocurrent on the wavelength of incident radiation are described. The practical part deals with the method of measuring and evaluating the lifetime of charge carriers in the investigated perovskite single crystals.

In this thesis, we present results of a numerical modelling study focused on the thermal evolution of the Earth and terrestrial planets. We focus particularly on two problems: I) constraining the internal structure of Venus and Mercury using their geoid and surface topography data and II) evaluating the effects of a rhe- ologically distinct post-perovskite on the secular cooling of the Earth. In part I, we performed simulations in a broad group of models of the Venusian man- tle, characterised by different rheological descriptions, and we compared spectra of their geoid and their surface topography with the observed quantities. Our analysis suggested that the geoid and the surface topography of Venus are con- sistent with a radially symmetric viscosity model with a strong 200 km thick lithosphere, without an asthenosphere and with a gradual viscosity increase in the underlying mantle. In the case of Mercury, none of our models was able to predict observed data, thus suggesting other than a dynamic origin of observed geoid and topography. In part II, we investigated style of Earth's mantle con- vection and its long-term evolution in the models that take into account a weak post-perovskite. We conclude that the presence of the weak post-perovskite en- hances the core cooling. This effect is comparable in...