<p>Lanthanum vanadium oxide (LaVO₃), a transition-metal oxide-based Mott insulator, has emerged as a promising photon absorber for next-generation photovoltaic applications due to its optimal energy bandgap and strong absorption coefficient in the visible region of the optical spectrum. In the present study, the material, optical, and electrical properties of LaVO₃ are studied using density functional theory. These properties are used to simulate the Pt/CuO/LaVO₃/ZnO/ITO-based photovoltaic device in the SCAPS-1D one-dimensional solar cell capacitance simulator. The photovoltaic performance of the proposed structure is optimized by varying the thickness and doping concentration of hole transport material, electron transport material, and the absorber layer. Additionally, the effects of variations in absorber defect concentration, functional temperature, and the work function of anode material on photovoltaic performance are investigated. An optimized power conversion efficiency of 9.8% with a fill factor of 62% is achieved for the LaVO₃-based solar cell. This work promises to pave the way for fabricating efficient Mott insulating perovskite-based photovoltaic devices by controlling various material- and device-related parameters.</p> Graphical Abstract <p></p>