Structure-property investigations in urea tethered iodinated triphenylamines.

Herein, we report structural, computational, and conductivity studies on urea-directed self-assembled iodinated triphenylamine (TPA) derivatives. Despite numerous reports of conductive TPAs, the challenges of correlating their solid-state assembly with charge transport properties hinder the efficient design of new materials. In this work, we compare the assembled structures of a methylene urea bridged dimer of di-iodo TPA (1) and the corresponding methylene urea di-iodo TPA monomer (2) with a di-iodo mono aldehyde (3) control. These modifications lead to needle shaped crystals for 1 and 2 that are organized by urea hydrogen bonding, π⋯π stacking, I⋯I, and I⋯π interactions as determined by SC-XRD, Hirshfeld surface analysis, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The long needle shaped crystals were robust enough to measure the conductivity by two contact probe methods with 2 exhibiting higher conductivity values (∼6 × 10-7 S cm-1) compared to 1 (1.6 × 10-8 S cm-1). Upon UV-irradiation, 1 formed low quantities of persistent radicals with the simple methylurea 2 displaying less radical formation. The electronic properties of 1 were further investigated using valence band XPS, which revealed a significant shift in the valence band upon UV irradiation (0.5-1.9 eV), indicating the potential of these materials as dopant free p-type hole transporters. The electronic structure calculations suggest that the close packing of TPA promotes their electronic coupling and allows effective charge carrier transport. Our results show that ionic additives significantly improve the conductivity up to ∼2.0 × 10-6 S cm-1 in thin films, enabling their implementation in functional devices such as perovskite or solid-state dye sensitized solar cells.

A Long-Term View on Perovskite Optoelectronics.

Recently, metal halide perovskite materials have become an exciting topic of research for scientists of a wide variety of backgrounds. Perovskites have found application in many fields, starting from photovoltaics and now also making an impact in light-emitting applications. This new class of materials has proven so interesting since it can be easily solution processed while exhibiting materials properties approaching the best inorganic optoelectronic materials such as GaAs and Si. In photovoltaics, in only 3 years, efficiencies have rapidly increased from an initial value of 3.8% to over 20% in recent reports for the commonly employed methylammonium lead iodide (MAPI) perovskite. The first light emitting diodes and light-emitting electrochemical cells have been developed already exhibiting internal quantum efficiencies exceeding 15% for the former and tunable light emission spectra. Despite their processing advantages, perovskite optoelectronic materials suffer from several drawbacks that need to be overcome before the technology becomes industrially relevant and hence achieve long-term application. Chief among these are the sensitivity of the structure toward moisture and crystal phase transitions in the device operation regime, unreliable device performance dictated by the operation history of the device, that is, hysteresis, the inherent toxicity of the structure, and the high cost of the employed charge selective contacts. In this Account, we highlight recent advances toward the long-term viability of perovskite photovoltaics. We identify material decomposition routes and suggest strategies to prevent damage to the structure. In particular, we focus on the effect of moisture upon the structure and stabilization of the material to avoid phase transitions in the solar cell operating range. Furthermore, we show strategies to achieve low-cost chemistries for the development of hole transporters for perovskite solar cells, necessary to be able to compete with other established technologies. Additionally, we explore the application of perovskite materials in optoelectronic applications. We show that perovskite materials can function efficiently both as a film in light-emitting diodes and also in the form of nanoparticles in light-emitting electrochemical cells. Perovskite materials have indeed a very bright future.

Blue-Green Color Tunable Solution Processable Organolead Chloride-Bromide Mixed Halide Perovskites for Optoelectronic Applications.

Solution-processed organo-lead halide perovskites are produced with sharp, color-pure electroluminescence that can be tuned from blue to green region of visible spectrum (425-570 nm). This was accomplished by controlling the halide composition of CH3NH3Pb(BrxCl1-x)3 [0 ≤ x ≤ 1] perovskites. The bandgap and lattice parameters change monotonically with composition. The films possess remarkably sharp band edges and a clean bandgap, with a single optically active phase. These chloride-bromide perovskites can potentially be used in optoelectronic devices like solar cells and light emitting diodes (LEDs). Here we demonstrate high color-purity, tunable LEDs with narrow emission full width at half maxima (FWHM) and low turn on voltages using thin-films of these perovskite materials, including a blue CH3NH3PbCl3 perovskite LED with a narrow emission FWHM of 5 nm.

Highly Efficient Reproducible Perovskite Solar Cells Prepared by Low-Temperature Processing.

In this work, we describe the role of the different layers in perovskite solar cells to achieve reproducible, ~16% efficient perovskite solar cells. We used a planar device architecture with PEDOT: PSS on the bottom, followed by the perovskite layer and an evaporated C60 layer before deposition of the top electrode. No high temperature annealing step is needed, which also allows processing on flexible plastic substrates. Only the optimization of all of these layers leads to highly efficient and reproducible results. In this work, we describe the effects of different processing conditions, especially the influence of the C60 top layer on the device performance.

Highly Luminescent Cesium Lead Halide Perovskite Nanocrystals with Tunable Composition and Thickness by Ultrasonication.

We describe the simple, scalable, single-step, and polar-solvent-free synthesis of high-quality colloidal CsPbX3 (X=Cl, Br, and I) perovskite nanocrystals (NCs) with tunable halide ion composition and thickness by direct ultrasonication of the corresponding precursor solutions in the presence of organic capping molecules. High angle annular dark field scanning transmission electron microscopy (HAADF-STEM) revealed the cubic crystal structure and surface termination of the NCs with atomic resolution. The NCs exhibit high photoluminescence quantum yields, narrow emission line widths, and considerable air stability. Furthermore, we investigated the quantum size effects in CsPbBr3 and CsPbI3 nanoplatelets by tuning their thickness down to only three to six monolayers. The high quality of the prepared NCs (CsPbBr3 ) was confirmed by amplified spontaneous emission with low thresholds. The versatility of this synthesis approach was demonstrated by synthesizing different perovskite NCs.

High-performance perovskite-polymer hybrid solar cells via electronic coupling with fullerene monolayers.

A plethora of solution-processed materials have been developed for solar cell applications. Hybrid solar cells based on light absorbing semiconducting polymers infiltrated into mesoporous TiO2 are an interesting concept, but generating charge at the polymer-metal oxide heterojunction is challenging. Metal-organic perovskite absorbers have recently shown remarkable efficiencies but currently lack the range of color tunability of organics. Here, we have combined a fullerene self-assembled monolayer (C60SAM) functionalized mesoporous titania, a perovskite absorber (CH3NH3PbI3-xClx), and a light absorbing polymer hole-conductor, P3HT, to realize a 6.7% efficient hybrid solar cell. We find that photoexcitations in both the perovskite and the polymer undergo very efficient electron transfer to the C60SAM. The C60SAM acts as an electron acceptor but inhibits further electron transfer into the TiO2 mesostructure due to energy level misalignment and poor electronic coupling. Thermalized electrons from the C60SAM are then transported through the perovskite phase. This strategy allows a reduction of energy loss, while still employing a "mesoporous electron acceptor", representing an exciting and versatile route forward for hybrid photovoltaics incorporating light-absorbing polymers. Finally, we show that we can use the C60SAM functionalization of mesoporous TiO2 to achieve an 11.7% perovskite-sensitized solar cell using Spiro-OMeTAD as a transparent hole transporter.

Temperature-Dependent Structural and Optoelectronic Properties of the Layered Perovskite 2-Thiophenemethylammonium Lead Iodide.

Improved knowledge of the influence of temperature upon layered perovskites is essential to enable perovskite-based devices to operate over a broad temperature range and to elucidate the impact of structural changes upon the optoelectronic properties. We examined the Ruddlesden-Popper layered perovskite 2-thiophenemethylammonium lead iodide (ThMA2PbI4) and observed a structural phase transition between a high- and a low-temperature phase at 220 K using temperature-dependent X-ray diffraction, UV-visible absorption, and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy. The structural phase transition altered the tilt pattern of the inorganic octahedra layer, modifying the absorption and PL spectra. Further, we found a narrow and intense additional PL peak in the low-temperature phase, which we assigned to radiative emission from a defect-bound exciton state. In both phases we determined the thermal expansion coefficient and found values similar to those of cubic 3D perovskites, i.e., larger than those of typical substrates such as glass. These results demonstrate that the organic spacer plays a critical role in controlling the temperature-dependent structural and optoelectronic properties of layered perovskites and suggests more widely that strain management strategies may be needed to fully utilize layered perovskites in device applications.

Post transition metal substituted Keggin-type POMs as thin film chemiresistive sensors for H2O and CO2 detection.

Chemiresitive sensing allows the affordable and facile detection of small molecules such as H2O and CO2. Herein, we report a novel class of Earth-abundant post transition metal substituted Keggin polyoxometalates (POMs) for chemiresistive sensing applications, with conductivities up to 0.01 S cm-1 under 100% CO2 and 65% Relative Humidity (RH).

Understanding the Impact of SAM Fermi Levels on High Efficiency p-i-n Perovskite Solar Cells.

Completing the picture of the underlying physics of perovskite solar cell interfaces that incorporate self-assembled molecular layers (SAMs) will accelerate further progress in p-i-n devices. In this work, we modified the Fermi level of a nickel oxide-perovskite interface by utilizing SAM layers with a range of dipole strengths to establish the link between the resulting shift of the built-in potential of the solar cell and the device parameters. To achieve this, we fabricated a series of high-efficiency perovskite solar cells with no hysteresis and characterized them through stabilize and pulse (SaP), JV curve, and time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) measurements. Our results unambiguously show that the potential drop across the perovskite layer (in the range of 0.6-1 V) exceeds the work function difference at the device's electrodes. These extracted potential drop values directly correlate to work function differences in the adjacent transport layers, thus demonstrating that their Fermi level difference entirely drives the built-in potential in this device configuration. Additionally, we find that selecting a SAM with a deep HOMO level can result in charge accumulation at the interface, leading to reduced current flow. Our findings provide insights into the device physics of p-i-n perovskite solar cells, highlighting the importance of interfacial energetics on device performance.

The balancing act between high electronic and low ionic transport influenced by perovskite grain boundaries.

A better understanding of the materials' fundamental physical processes is necessary to push hybrid perovskite photovoltaic devices towards their theoretical limits. The role of the perovskite grain boundaries is essential to optimise the system thoroughly. The influence of the perovskite grain size and crystal orientation on physical properties and their resulting photovoltaic performance is examined. We develop a novel, straightforward synthesis approach that yields crystals of a similar size but allows the tuning of their orientation to either the (200) or (002) facet alignment parallel to the substrate by manipulating dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and tetrahydrothiophene-1-oxide (THTO) ratios. This decouples crystal orientation from grain size, allowing the study of charge carrier mobility, found to be improved with larger grain sizes, highlighting the importance of minimising crystal disorder to achieve efficient devices. However, devices incorporating crystals with the (200) facet exhibit an s-shape in the current density-voltage curve when standard scan rates are used, which typically signals an energetic interfacial barrier. Using the drift-diffusion simulations, we attribute this to slower-moving ions (mobility of 0.37 × 10-10 cm2 V-1 s-1) in combination with a lower density of mobile ions. This counterintuitive result highlights that reducing ion migration does not necessarily minimise hysteresis.

Enhanced electronic contacts in SnO2-dye-P3HT based solid state dye sensitized solar cells.

We present an investigation on the optimisation of solid-state dye sensitized solar cells (SDSCs) comprising mesoporous tin oxide photoanodes infiltrated with poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT) hole conductor and sensitized with an organic dye. We chose both the SnO(2) and P3HT for their high charge carrier mobilities and conductivities, but as a result preclude conventional device configurations because of high leakage current and low shunt-resistance. To minimize the "hole leakage current" through the FTO anode, we employed a double compact layer structure, and to minimize "electron leakage current" at the silver cathode, we developed a protocol for depositing an optimal P3HT "capping layer". After optimisation of cell fabrication, the electron lifetime is increased considerably and the solar cells exhibited simulated AM1.5 full sun solar power conversion efficiencies in excess of 1%.

Lithium salts as "redox active" p-type dopants for organic semiconductors and their impact in solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells.

Lithium salts have been shown to dramatically increase the conductivity in a broad range of polymeric and small molecule organic semiconductors (OSs). Here we demonstrate and identify the mechanism by which Li(+) p-dopes OSs in the presence of oxygen. After we established the lithium doping mechanism, we re-evaluate the role of lithium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)-imide (Li-TFSI) in 2,2',7,7'-tetrakis(N,N-di-p-methoxyphenyl-amine)9,9'-Spirobifluorene (Spiro-OMeTAD) based solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells (ss-DSSCs). The doping mechanism consumes Li(+) during the device operation, which poses a problem, since the lithium salt is required at the dye-sensitized heterojunction to enhance charge generation. This compromise highlights that new additives are required to maximize the performance and the long-term stability of ss-DSSCs.

A focus on sustainable energy management for self-powered IoT devices via indoor photovoltaics.

The future of information technologies lies in the form of trillions of autonomous 'smart objects' that can sense and communicate with their environment delivering pervasive and ubiquitous computing beyond today's imagination. Michaels et al. (H. Michaels, M. Rinderle, I. Benesperi, R. Freitag, A. Gagliardi and M. Freitag, Chem. Sci., 2023, 14, 5350, https://doi.org/10.1039/D3SC00659J) have achieved a key milestone in this context by developing an integrated autonomous and light-powered Internet of Things (IoT) system. They also show that dye-sensitized solar cells are particularly well-suited for this purpose with an indoor power conversion efficiency of 38%, far surpassing conventional silicon photovoltaics and alternative indoor photovoltaics technologies.

Terahertz Emission via Optical Rectification in a Metal-Free Perovskite Crystal.

We report on the emission of high-intensity pulsed terahertz radiation from the metal-free halide perovskite single crystal methyl-DABCO ammonium iodide (MDNI) under femtosecond illumination. The power and angular dependence of the THz output implicate optical rectification of the 800 nm pump as the mechanism of THz generation. Further characterization finds that, for certain crystal orientations, the angular dependence of THz emission is modulated by phonon resonances attributable to the motion of the methyl-DABCO moiety. At maximum, the THz emission spectrum of MDNI is free from significant phonon resonances, resulting in THz pulses with a temporal width of <900 fs and a peak-to-peak electric field strength of approximately 0.8 kV cm-1-2 orders of magnitude higher than any other reported halide perovskite emitters. Our results point toward metal-free perovskites as a promising new class of THz emitters that brings to bear many of the advantages enjoyed by other halide perovskite materials. In particular, the broad tunability of optoelectronic properties and ease of fabrication of perovskite materials opens up the possibility of further optimizing the THz emission properties within this material class.

Improving the Conductivity of Amide-Based Small Molecules through Enhanced Molecular Packing and Their Application as Hole Transport Mediators in Perovskite Solar Cells.

Organic-inorganic hybrid halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have attracted substantial attention from the photovoltaic research community, with the power conversion efficiency (PCE) already exceeding 26%. Current state-of-the-art devices rely on Spiro-OMeTAD as the hole-transporting material (HTM); however, Spiro-OMeTAD is costly due to its complicated synthesis and expensive product purification, while its low conductivity ultimately limits the achievable device efficiency. In this work, we build upon our recently introduced family of low-cost amide-based small molecules and introduce a molecule (termed TPABT) that results in high conductivity values (∼10-5 S cm-1 upon addition of standard ionic additives), outperforming our previous amide-based material (EDOT-Amide-TPA, ∼10-6 S cm-1) while only costing an estimated $5/g. We ascribe the increased optoelectronic properties to favorable molecular packing, as shown by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, which results in close spacing between the triphenylamine blocks. This, in turn, results in a short hole-hopping distance between molecules and therefore good mobility and conductivity. In addition, TPABT exhibits a higher bandgap and is as a result more transparent in the visible range of the solar spectrum, leading to lower parasitic absorption losses than Spiro-OMeTAD, and has increased moisture stability. We applied the molecule in perovskite solar cells and obtained good efficiency values in the ∼15% range. Our approach shows that engineering better molecular packing may be the key to developing high-efficiency, low-cost HTMs for perovskite solar cells.

Ionic Accumulation as a Diagnostic Tool in Perovskite Solar Cells: Characterizing Band Alignment with Rapid Voltage Pulses.

Despite record-breaking devices, interfaces in perovskite solar cells are still poorly understood, inhibiting further progress. Their mixed ionic-electronic nature results in compositional variations at the interfaces, depending on the history of externally applied biases. This makes it difficult to measure the band energy alignment of charge extraction layers accurately. As a result, the field often resorts to a trial-and-error process to optimize these interfaces. Current approaches are typically carried out in a vacuum and on incomplete cells, hence values may not reflect those found in working devices. To address this, a pulsed measurement technique characterizing the electrostatic potential energy drop across the perovskite layer in a functioning device is developed. This method reconstructs the current-voltage (JV) curve for a range of stabilization biases, holding the ion distribution "static" during subsequent rapid voltage pulses. Two different regimes are observed: at low biases, the reconstructed JV curve is "s-shaped", whereas, at high biases, typical diode-shaped curves are returned. Using drift-diffusion simulations, it is demonstrated that the intersection of the two regimes reflects the band offsets at the interfaces. This approach effectively allows measurements of interfacial energy level alignment in a complete device under illumination and without the need for expensive vacuum equipment.

Layer-by-layer formation of block-copolymer-derived TiO(2) for solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells.

Morphology control on the 10 nm length scale in mesoporous TiO(2) films is crucial for the manufacture of high-performance dye-sensitized solar cells. While the combination of block-copolymer self-assembly with sol-gel chemistry yields good results for very thin films, the shrinkage during the film manufacture typically prevents the build-up of sufficiently thick layers to enable optimum solar cell operation. Here, a study on the temporal evolution of block-copolymer-directed mesoporous TiO(2) films during annealing and calcination is presented. The in-situ investigation of the shrinkage process enables the establishment of a simple and fast protocol for the fabrication of thicker films. When used as photoanodes in solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells, the mesoporous networks exhibit significantly enhanced transport and collection rates compared to the state-of-the-art nanoparticle-based devices. As a consequence of the increased film thickness, power conversion efficiencies above 4% are reached.

Obviating the requirement for oxygen in SnO2-based solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells.

Organic semiconductors employed in solar cells are perfectly stable to solar irradiation provided oxygen content can be kept below 1 ppm. Paradoxically, the state-of-the-art molecular hole-transporter-based solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells only operate efficiently if measured in an atmosphere containing oxygen. Without oxygen, these devices rapidly lose photovoltage and photocurrent and are rendered useless. Clearly this peculiar requirement has detrimental implications to the long term stability of these devices. Through characterizing the solar cells in air and in oxygen-free atmospheres, and considering the device architecture, we identify that direct contact between the metallic cathode and the mesoporous metal oxide photo-anode is responsible for a shunting path through the device. This metal-metal oxide contact forms a Schottky barrier under ambient conditions and the barrier is suitably high so as to prevent significant shunting of the solar cells. However, under light absorption in an anaerobic atmosphere the barrier reduces significantly, opening a low resistance shunting path which dominates the current-voltage characteristics in the solar cell. By incorporating an extra interlayer of insulating mesoporous aluminum oxide, on top of the mesoporous semiconducting metal oxide electrode, we successfully block this shunting path and subsequently the devices operate efficiently in an oxygen-free atmosphere, enabling the possibility of long term stability of solid-state dye-sensitized solar cells.

A general approach for hysteresis-free, operationally stable metal halide perovskite field-effect transistors.

Despite sustained research, application of lead halide perovskites in field-effect transistors (FETs) has substantial concerns in terms of operational instabilities and hysteresis effects which are linked to its ionic nature. Here, we investigate the mechanism behind these instabilities and demonstrate an effective route to suppress them to realize high-performance perovskite FETs with low hysteresis, high threshold voltage stability (ΔVt < 2 V over 10 hours of continuous operation), and high mobility values >1 cm2/V·s at room temperature. We show that multiple cation incorporation using strain-relieving cations like Cs and cations such as Rb, which act as passivation/crystallization modifying agents, is an effective strategy for reducing vacancy concentration and ion migration in perovskite FETs. Furthermore, we demonstrate that treatment of perovskite films with positive azeotrope solvents that act as Lewis bases (acids) enables a further reduction in defect density and substantial improvement in performance and stability of n-type (p-type) perovskite devices.

Universal Nanoparticle Wetting Agent for Upscaling Perovskite Solar Cells.

Solution-processed perovskite solar cells reach efficiencies over 23% on lab-scale. However, a reproducible transfer of these established processes to upscaling techniques or different substrate surfaces requires a highly controllable perovskite film formation. Especially, hydrophobic surfaces cause severe dewetting issues. Such surfaces are particularly crucial for the so-called standard n-i-p cell architecture when fullerene-based electron transport layers are employed underneath perovskite absorber films. In this work, a unique and universally applicable method was developed based on the deposition of size-controlled Al2O3 or SiO2 nanoparticles. By enhancing the surface energy, they act as a universal wetting agent. This allows perovskite precursor solutions to be spread perfectly over various substrates including problematic hydrophobic Si-wafers or fullerene self-assembled monolayers (C60-SAMs). Moreover, the results show that the perovskite morphology, solar cell performance, and reproducibility benefit from the presence of the nanoparticles at the interface. When applied to 144 cm2 C60-SAM-coated substrates, homogenous coverage can be realized via spin coating resulting in average efficiencies of 16% (maximum 18%) on individualized cells with 0.1 cm2 active area. Modules in the same setup reached maximum efficiencies of 11 and 7% on 2.8 and 23.65 cm2 aperture areas, respectively.