Dynamic Stress and Strain Evolution and Engineering Strategies to Enhance Operational Durability in Perovskite Solar Cells

Abstract Perovskite solar cells achieve high power conversion efficiencies and are compatible with scalable, low-cost manufacturing, but their commercialization is limited by insufficient operational stability. Conventional stability tests usually rely on static protocols, such as continuous illumination or elevated temperature aging, which could fail to capture real-world degradation pathways. Mechanical stress and strain contribute to defect formation, ion migration, cracking, and delamination but are often reported only as static residual states established during fabrication. This review emphasizes the need to consider how stress and strain evolve under realistic conditions involving fluctuating temperature, illumination, and humidity. Temperature cycling induces thermal expansion mismatch stress, illumination drives lattice expansion and phase segregation, and moisture-induced degradation is coupled to stress and strain. Buried interface engineering and polymer incorporation in the perovskite absorber are highlighted as strategies to actively mitigate transient stress fluctuations, allowing for the design of mechanically robust perovskite photovoltaics suitable for real-world deployment.