Seeding Agents in Metal Halide Perovskite Solar Cells: From Material to Mechanism

Universal in situ oxide-based ABX3-structured seeds for templating halide perovskite growth in All-perovskite tandems

Precise control over halide perovskite crystallization is pivotal for realizing efficient solar cells. Here, we introduce a strategy utilizing in-situ-formed oxide-based ABX3-structured seeds to regulate perovskite crystallization and growth. Introducing potassium stannate into perovskite precursors triggers a spontaneous reaction with lead iodide, producing potassium iodide and lead stannate. Potassium iodide effectively passivates defects, while PbSnO3 (ABX3-structured), exhibiting a 98% lattice match, acts as a template and seed. This approach facilitates pre-nucleation cluster formation, preferential grain orientation, and the elimination of intermediate-phase processes in perovskite films. Incorporating potassium stannate into both the perovskite precursors and the buried hole transport layers enables single-junction 1.25 eV-bandgap Sn-Pb perovskite solar cells to achieve a steady-state efficiency of 23.12% and enhanced stability. Furthermore, all-perovskite tandem devices yield efficiencies of 28.12% (two-terminal) and 28.81% (four-terminal). This versatile templating method also boosts the performance of 1.77 eV and 1.54 eV-bandgap cells, underscoring its broad applicability.

Crosslinking-Driven Chemical Homogeneity Enhances Performance of Pre-Seeded Perovskite Solar Cells

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have achieved impressive efficiency, but their commercialization is limited by issues like chemical homogeneity within the perovskite films, leading to defects and phase segregation, which severely compromise the stability and performance of PSCs. This study presents a novel approach to overcoming these barriers by employing N,N-methylenebisacrylamide (MBA) as a multifunctional crosslinking agent within the perovskite structure. MBA enhances chemical uniformity both laterally and vertically, improves crystallinity, and boosts overall film stability by forming a robust crosslinked network that regulates nucleation and growth dynamics during the pre-seeding process. This modification ensures a uniform distribution within the perovskite matrix and significantly reduces defect densities. As a result, MBA-treated PSCs achieved a notable improvement in power conversion efficiency (PCE), reaching up to 24.26%, compared to 22.64% in control devices. Additionally, the MBA-modified devices demonstrated remarkable stability, maintaining 90% of their initial efficiency after 1200 h of continuous illumination, in contrast to the 50% efficiency loss observed in control devices after just 500 h. These findings underscore the transformative potential of MBA as an additive in PSCs, offering a viable pathway to not only enhance efficiency but also significantly improve the long-term stability of these devices, thus bringing PSCs closer to commercial viability.

Simultaneous Li-Doping and Formation of SnO2-Based Composites with TiO2: Applications for Perovskite Solar Cells

Tin oxide (SnO2) has been recognized as one of the beneficial components in the electron transport layer (ETL) of lead-halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) due to its high electron mobility. The SnO2-based thin film serves for electron extraction and transport in the device, induced by light absorption at the perovskite layer. The focus of this paper is on the heat treatment of a nanoaggregate layer of single-nanometer-scale SnO2 particles in combination with another metal-dopant precursor to develop a new process for ETL in PSCs. The combined precursor solution of Li chloride and titanium(IV) isopropoxide (TTIP) was deposited onto the SnO2 layer. We varied the heat treatment conditions of the spin-coated films comprising double layers, i.e., an Li/TTIP precursor layer and SnO2 nanoparticle layer, to understand the effects of nanoparticle interconnection via sintering and the mixing ratio of the Li-dopant on the photovoltaic performance. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM) measurements of the sintered nanoparticles suggested that an Li-doped solid solution of SnO2 with a small amount of TiO2 nanoparticles formed via heating. Interestingly, the bandgap of the Li-doped ETL samples was estimated to be 3.45 eV, indicating a narrower bandgap as compared to that of pure SnO2. This observation also supported the formation of an SnO2/TiO2 solid solution in the ETL. The utilization of such a nanoparticulate SnO2 film in combination with an Li/TTIP precursor could offer a new approach as an alternative to conventional SnO2 electron transport layers for optimizing the performance of lead-halide perovskite solar cells.

Growth methods' effect on the physical characteristics of CsPbBr3 single crystal

This study offers an extensive exploration into approaches for cultivating CsPbBr3 SCs using inverse temperature crystallization (ITC), with a specific focus on seed-induced (method (1)) and nucleation-mediated (method (2)) growth techniques. Our findings reveal that leveraging seed-assisted growth at lower temperatures yields noteworthy enhancements in the material's optical and electrical behaviors, outperforming the outcomes achieved through nucleation-driven growth. Concretely, through the employment of the space charge limited current (SCLC) technique, an evident contrast emerges in the trap-populated threshold voltage between the seed-facilitated crystal (SC1) (measuring 0.309 V) and its nucleation-facilitated counterpart (SC2) (measuring 1.513 V), consequently giving rise to discernable dissimilarities in trap density assessments. Evidence from temperature-dependent analysis of space charge limited currents substantiates these findings, revealing trap density values of 8.81 × 109 cm-3 for SC1, juxtaposed with 2.08 × 1010 cm-3 for SC2. Additionally, the SC1 displays a notably diminished trap energy level. Furthermore, the investigation underscores the affirmative influence of method (1) at lower temperatures on the optical and crystalline characteristics of the substance. This effect is evidenced by enhanced photoluminescence (PL) reactions and reduced lattice strain (Ls), as determined through X-ray diffraction (XRD) techniques. Moreover, the research establishes the substantial impact of this enhanced crystallization technique on the photodetector (PD) attributes of the crystal. This effect induces elevated levels of detectivity and responsivity for method (1).