Electron‐Transport‐Layer‐Assisted Crystallization of Perovskite Films for High‐Efficiency Planar Heterojunction Solar Cells

Crystal engineering of CH₃NH₃PbI₃ perovskite materials through template‐directed nucleation and growth on PbI₂ nuclei dispersed in a polar fullerene (C₆₀ pyrrolidine tris‐acid, CPTA) electron transport layer (ETL) (CPTA:PbI₂) is proposed as a route for controlling crystallization kinetics and grain sizes. Chemical analysis of the CPTA:PbI₂ template confirms that CPTA carboxylic acid groups can form a monodentate or bidentate chelate with Pb(II), resulting in a lower nucleation barrier that promotes rapid formation of the tetragonal perovskite phase. Moreover, it is demonstrated that a uniform CH₃NH₃PbI₃ film with highly crystalline and large domain sizes can be realized by increasing the spacing between nuclei to retard perovskite crystal growth via careful control of the preferred nucleation site distribution in the CPTA:PbI₂ layer. The improved perovskite morphology possesses a long photoluminescence lifetime and efficient photocarrier transport/separation properties to eliminate the hysteresis effect. The corresponding planar heterojunction photovoltaic yields a high power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 20.20%, with a high fill factor (FF) of 81.13%. The average PCE and FF values for 30 devices are 19.03% ± 0.57% and 78.67% ± 2.13%, respectively. The results indicate that this ETL template‐assisted crystallization strategy can be applied to other organometal halide perovskite‐based systems.     

Morphological Control for High Performance,Solution‐Processed Planar Heterojunction Perovskite Solar Cells

Organometal trihalide perovskite based solar cells have exhibited the highest efficiencies to‐date when incorporated into mesostructured composites. However, thin solid films of a perovskite absorber should be capable of operating at the highest efficiency in a simple planar heterojunction configuration. Here, it is shown that film morphology is a critical issue in planar heterojunction CH₃NH₃PbI_3‐xCl_x solar cells. The morphology is carefully controlled by varying processing conditions, and it is demonstrated that the highest photocurrents are attainable only with the highest perovskite surface coverages. With optimized solution based film formation, power conversion efficiencies of up to 11.4% are achieved, the first report of efficiencies above 10% in fully thin‐film solution processed perovskite solar cells with no mesoporous layer.     

Achieving 20% Efficiency for Low‐Temperature‐Processed Inverted Perovskite Solar Cells

Low‐temperature‐processed inverted perovskite solar cells (PVSCs) attract increasing attention because they can be fabricated on both rigid and flexible substrates. For these devices, hole‐transporting layers (HTLs) play an important role in achieving efficient and stable inverted PVSCs by adjusting the anodic work function, hole extraction, and interfacial charge recombination. Here, the use of a low‐temperature (≤150 °C) solution‐processed ultrathin film of poly[(9,9‐dioctyl‐fluorenyl‐2,7‐diyl)‐co‐(4,4′‐(N‐(4‐secbutylphenyl) diphenylamine)] (TFB) is reported as an HTL in one‐step‐processed CH₃NH₃PbI₃ (MAPbI₃)‐based inverted PVSCs. The fabricated device exhibits power conversion efficiency (PCE) as high as 20.2% when measured under AM 1.5 G illumination. This PCE makes them one of the MAPbI₃‐based inverted PVSCs that have the highest efficiency reported to date. Moreover, this inverted PVSC also shows good stability, which can retain 90% of its original efficiency after 30 days of storage in ambient air.     

Hydrothermally Treated SnO2 as the Electron Transport Layer in High‐Efficiency Flexible Perovskite Solar Cells with a Certificated Efficiency of 17.3%

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are one of the most promising solar energy conversion technologies owing to their rapidly developing power conversion efficiency (PCE). Low‐temperature solution processing of the perovskite layer enables the fabrication of flexible devices. However, their application has been greatly hindered due to the lack of strategies to fabricate high‐quality electron transport layers (ETLs) at the low temperatures (≈100 °C) that most flexible plastic substrates can withstand, leading to poor performances for flexible PSCs. In this work, through combining the spin‐coating process with a hydrothermal treatment method, ligand‐free and highly crystalline SnO₂ ETLs are successfully fabricated at low temperature. The flexible PSCs based on this SnO₂ ETL exhibit an excellent PCE of 18.1% (certified 17.3%). The flexible PSCs maintained 85% of the initial PCE after 1000 bending cycles and over 90% of the initial PCE after being stored in ambient air for 30 days without encapsulation. The investigation reveals that hydrothermal treatment not only promotes the complete removal of organic surfactants coated onto the surface of the SnO₂ nanoparticles by hot water vapor but also enhances crystallization through the high vapor pressure of water, leading to the formation of high‐quality SnO₂ ETLs.     

Multiple Function Synchronous Optimization by PbS Quantum Dots for Highly Stable Planar Perovskite Solar Cells with Efficiency Exceeding 23%

Colloidal lead sulfide (PbS) quantum dots (QDs), which possess quantum confinement effect and processing compatibility with perovskite, are regarded as an excellent material for optimizing perovskite solar cells (PSCs). However, the existing PSCs optimized by PbS QDs are still facing the challenges of poor performance of the charge transport layers, low utilization in the near-infrared (NIR) region, and unsuitable energy level alignment, which limit the improvement of power conversion efficiency (PCE). Herein, a synchronous optimization strategy is realized via simultaneously introducing PbS QDs into SnO₂ electron transport layer and employing rare-earth-doped PbS QDs (Eu:PbS QDs) film with hydrophobic chain ligands as the NIR light-absorping layer and hole transport layer (HTL) of devices. PbS QDs effectively decrease the density of trap states by passivating defects. Eu:PbS QDs film with adjustable bandgap is employed as an absorption layer to broaden the NIR spectral absorption. The well-matched energy level between Eu:PbS QDs layer and perovskite layer implies efficient hole transfer at the interface. The successful synchronous optimization greatly elevates all photovoltaic parameters, reaching a maximum PCE of 23.27%. This PCE is the highest for PSCs utilizing PbS QDs material in recent years. The optimized PSCs retain long-term moisture and light stability.     

Fluorinated Pentafulvalene-Fused Hole-Transporting Material Enhances the Performance of Perovskite Solar Cells with Efficiency Exceeding 23%

Organic small molecular materials with coplanar π-conjugated system as HTMs in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have attracted considerable attention due to their high charge transport capability and thermal stability. Herein, three novel pentafulvalene-fused derivatives with or without fluorine atoms incorporated ( YSH-oF and YSH-mF and YSH-H , respectively) are designed, synthesized, and applied as hole-transporting materials (HTMs) in PSCs fabrication. The fluorinated HTMs, YSH-oF and YSH-mF , exhibited higher hole mobility and better charge extraction at the perovskite/HTM interface than non-fluorinated one do, presumably due to the closer intermolecular π–π packing interactions. As a result, small-area (0.09 cm²) PSCs made with YSH-oF and YSH-mF achieved an impressive power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 23.59% and 22.76% respectively, with negligible hysteresis, in contrast with the 20.57% for the YSH-H -based devices. Furthermore, for large-area (1.00 cm²) devices, the PSCs employing YSH-oF exhibited a PCE of 21.92%. Moreover, excellent long-term device stability is demonstrated for PSCs with F-substituted HTMs ( YSH-oF and YSH-mF ), presumably due to the higher hydrophobicity. This study shows the great potential of fluorinated pentafulvalene-fused materials as low-cost HTM for efficient and stable PSCs.     

Controllable Perovskite Crystallization by Water Additive for High‐Performance Solar Cells

A key issue for perovskite solar cells is the stability of perovskite materials due to moisture effects under ambient conditions, although their efficiency is improved constantly. Herein, an improved CH₃NH₃PbI_3?xCl_x perovskite quality is demonstrated with good crystallization and stability by using water as an additive during crystal perovskite growth. Incorporating suitable water additives in N,N‐dimethylformamide (DMF) leads to controllable growth of perovskites due to the lower boiling point and the higher vapor pressure of water compared with DMF. In addition, CH₃NH₃PbI_3?xCl_x · nH₂O hydrated perovskites, which can be resistant to the corrosion by water molecules to some extent, are assumed to be generated during the annealing process. Accordingly, water additive based perovskite solar cells present a high power conversion efficiency of 16.06% and improved cell stability under ambient conditions compared with the references. The findings in this work provide a route to control the growth of crystal perovskites and a clue to improve the stability of organic–inorganic halide perovskites.     

Precursor Engineering for All‐Inorganic CsPbI2Br Perovskite Solar Cells with 14.78% Efficiency

The optoelectronic properties of perovskite films are closely related to the film quality, so depositing dense, uniform, and stable perovskite films is crucial for fabricating high‐performance perovskite solar cells (PSCs). CsPbI₂Br perovskite, prized for its superb stability toward light soaking and thermal aging, has received a great deal of attention recently. However, the air instability and poor performance of CsPbI₂Br PSCs are hindering its further progress. Here, an approach is reported for depositing high‐quality CsPbI₂Br films via the Lewis base adducts PbI₂(DMSO) and PbBr₂(DMSO) as precursors to slow the crystallization of the perovskite film. This process produces CsPbI₂Br films with large‐scale crystalline grains, flat surfaces, low defects, and long carrier lifetimes. More interestingly, PbI₂(DMSO) and PbBr₂(DMSO) adducts could significantly improve the stability of CsPbI₂Br films in air. Using films prepared by this technique, a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 14.78% is obtained in CsPbI₂Br PSCs, which is the highest PCE value reported for CsPbI₂Br‐based PSCs to date. In addition, the PSCs based on DMSO adducts show an extended operational lifetime in air. These excellent performances indicate that preparing high‐quality inorganic perovskite films by using DMSO adducts will be a potential method for improving the performance of other inorganic PSCs.     

Conjugated Small Molecule for Efficient Hole Transport in High‐Performance p‐i‐n Type Perovskite Solar Cells

The π‐conjugated organic small molecule 4,4′‐cyclohexylidenebis[N,N‐bis(4‐methylphenyl) benzenamine] (TAPC) has been explored as an efficient hole transport material to replace poly(3,4‐ethylenedio‐xythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) in the preparation of p‐i‐n type CH₃NH₃PbI₃ perovskite solar cells. Smooth, uniform, and hydrophobic TAPC hole transport layers can be facilely deposited through solution casting without the need for any dopants. The power conversion efficiency of perovskite solar cells shows very weak TAPC layer thickness dependence across the range from 5 to 90 nm. Thermal annealing enables improved hole conductivity and efficient charge transport through an increase in TAPC crystallinity. The perovskite photoactive layer cast onto thermally annealed TAPC displays large grains and low residual PbI₂, leading to a high charge recombination resistance. After optimization, a stabilized power conversion efficiency of 18.80% is achieved with marginal hysteresis, much higher than the value of 12.90% achieved using PEDOT:PSS. The TAPC‐based devices also demonstrate superior stability compared with the PEDOT:PSS‐based devices when stored in ambient circumstances, with a relatively high humidity ranging from 50 to 85%.     

Ionic Additive Engineering Toward High‐Efficiency Perovskite Solar Cells with Reduced Grain Boundaries and Trap Density

Organic–inorganic hybrid perovskite solar cells have emerged as one of the promising photovoltaic candidates to generate renewable energy. However, the large amounts of grain boundaries and trap states that exist in the bulk or interfacial regions of perovskite films limit further enhancement of device efficiency. Herein, an additive engineering strategy is introduced employing trimethylammonium chloride in the methylammonium iodide precursor solution to prepare methylammonium lead iodide perovskite films with reduced grain boundaries and trap densities. This leads to an increased charge carrier diffusion coefficient and diffusion length, as evaluated by impedance and voltage decay measurements, intensity‐modulated photovoltage, and photocurrent spectroscopies. The proportion of nonradiative recombination processes is significantly reduced, consequently increasing device efficiency from 19.1% to 20.9% in these perovskite solar cells.     

Passivated Perovskite Crystallization via g‐C3N4 for High‐Performance Solar Cells

Organometallic halide perovskite films with good surface morphology and large grain size are desirable for obtaining high‐performance photovoltaic devices. However, defects and related trap sites are generated inevitably at grain boundaries and on surfaces of solution‐processed polycrystalline perovskite films. Seeking facial and efficient methods to passivate the perovskite film for minimizing defect density is necessary for further improving the photovoltaic performance. Here, a convenient strategy is developed to improve perovskite crystallization by incorporating a 2D polymeric material of graphitic carbon nitride (g‐C₃N₄) into the perovskite layer. The addition of g‐C₃N₄ results in improved crystalline quality of perovskite film with large grain size by retarding the crystallization rate, and reduced intrinsic defect density by passivating charge recombination centers around the grain boundaries. In addition, g‐C₃N₄ doping increases the film conductivity of perovskite layer, which is beneficial for charge transport in perovskite light‐absorption layer. Consequently, a champion device with a maximum power conversion efficiency of 19.49% is approached owing to a remarkable improvement in fill factor from 0.65 to 0.74. This finding demonstrates a simple method to passivate the perovskite film by controlling the crystallization and reducing the defect density.     

High Efficiency Planar p‐i‐n Perovskite Solar Cells Using Low‐Cost Fluorene‐Based Hole Transporting Material

For commercial applications, it is a challenge to find suitable and low‐cost hole‐transporting material (HTM) in perovskite solar cells (PSCs), where high efficiency spiro‐OMeTAD and PTAA are expensive. A HTM based on 9,9‐dihexyl‐9H‐fluorene and N,N‐di‐p‐methylthiophenylamine (denoted as FMT) is designed and synthesized. High‐yield FMT with a linear structure is synthesized in two steps. The dopant‐free FMT‐based planar p‐i‐n perovskite solar cells (pp‐PSCs) exhibit a high power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 19.06%, which is among the highest PCEs reported for the pp‐PSCs based on organic HTM. For comparison, a PEDOT:PSS HTM‐based pp‐PSC is fabricated under the same conditions, and its PCE is found to be 13.9%.     

Surface Passivation with Diaminopropane Dihydroiodide for p-i-n Perovskite Solar Cells with Over 25% Efficiency

At present, one of the major factors limiting the further improvement of inverted (p-i-n) perovskite solar cells (PSCs) is trap-assisted non-radiative recombination at the perovskite/electron transporting layer (ETL) interface. Surface passivation with organic ammonium salt is a powerful strategy to improve the performance of PSCs. Herein, an effective method by using propylamine hydroiodide (PAI) and 1,3-diaminopropane dihydroiodide (PDADI) is reported to modify the perovskite/ETL interface. These two ammonium salts do not form new perovskite but directly passivate the defects on the perovskite surface after annealing. The results show that the PDADI-modified perovskite films possess a lower surface defect density and less non-radiative recombination as well as improved charge carrier transport. Based on this strategy, the PDADI-modified p-i-n PSCs deliver an impressive efficiency of 25.09% (certified 24.58%) with an open-circuit voltage of 1.184 V. Furthermore, the unencapsulated PDADI-modified PSCs also exhibit good storage stability, retaining 91% of initial PCE at 65 °C in a N₂ glove box for 1300 h. This strategy provides an efficient route to fabricate highly efficient and stable inverted p-i-n structured PSCs.     

Nonfullerene Electron Transporting Material Based on Naphthalene Diimide Small Molecule for Highly Stable Perovskite Solar Cells with Efficiency Exceeding 20%

This study reports a new nonfullerene electron transporting material (ETM) based on naphthalene diimide (NDI) small molecules for use in high‐performance perovskite solar cells (PSCs). These solar cells simultaneously achieve high power conversion efficiency (PCE) of over 20% and long‐term stability. New NDI‐ID (N,N′‐Bis(1‐indanyl)naphthalene‐1,4,5,8‐tetracarboxylic diimide) consisting of an N‐substituted indane group having simultaneous alicyclic and aromatic characteristics is synthesized by a low‐cost, one‐step reaction, and facile purification method. The partially flexible characteristics of an alicyclic cyclopentene group on indane groups open the possibility of low‐temperature solution processing. The conformational rigidity and aromaticity of phenyl and alicyclic groups contribute to high temporal stability by strong secondary bonds. NDI‐ID has herringbone packed semiconducting NDI cores that exhibit up to 0.2 cm² V^?1 s^?1 electron mobility in field effect transistors. The inverted PSCs based on CH(NH₂)₂PbI_3–xBr_x with NDI‐ID ETM exhibit very high PCEs of up to 20.2%, which is better than that of widely used PCBM (phenyl‐C61‐butyric acid methyl ester) ETM‐based PSCs. Moreover, NDI‐ID‐based PSCs exhibit very high long‐term temporal stability, retaining 90% of the initial PCE after 500 h at 100 °C with 1 sun illumination without encapsulation. Therefore, NDI‐ID is a promising ETM for highly efficient, stable PSCs.     

HPbI3: A New Precursor Compound for Highly Efficient Solution‐Processed Perovskite Solar Cells

Recently, there have been extensive research efforts on developing high performance organolead halide based perovskite solar cells. While most studies focused on optimizing the deposition processes of the perovskite films, the selection of the precursors has been rather limited to the lead halide/methylammonium (or formamidium) halide combination. In this work, we developed a new precursor, HPbI₃, to replace lead halide. The new precursor enables formation of highly uniform formamidium lead iodide (FAPbI₃) films through a one‐step spin‐coating process. Furthermore, the FAPbI₃ perovskite films exhibit a highly crystalline phase with strong (110) preferred orientation and excellent thermal stability. The planar heterojunction solar cells based on these perovskite films exhibit an average efficiency of 15.4% and champion efficiency of 17.5% under AM 1.5 G illumination. By comparing the morphology and formation process of the perovskite films fabricated from the formamidium iodide (FAI)/HPbI₃, FAI/PbI₂, and FAI/PbI₂ with HI additive precursor combinations, it is shown that the superior property of the HPbI₃ based perovskite films may originate from 1) a slow crystallization process involving exchange of H⁺ and FA⁺ ions in the PbI₆ octahedral framework and 2) elimination of water in the precursor solution state.     

Spidermen Strategy for Stable 24% Efficiency Perovskite Solar Cells

The interface energetics-modification plays an important role in improving the power conversion efficiency (PCE) among the perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Considering the low carrier mobility caused by defects in PSCs, a double-layer modification engineering strategy is adopted to introduce the “spiderman” NOBF₄ (nitrosonium tetrafluoroborate) between tin dioxide (SnO₂ and perovskite layers. NO⁺, as the interfacial bonding layer, can passivate the oxygen vacancy in SnO₂, while BF₄⁻ can optimize the defects in the bulk of perovskite. This conclusion is confirmed by theoretical calculation and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The synergistic effect of NO⁺ and BF₄⁻ distinctly heightens the carrier extraction efficiency, and the PCE of PSCs is 24.04% with a fill factor (FF) of 82.98% and long-term stability. This study underlines the effectiveness of multifunctional additives in improving interface contact and enhancing PCE of PSCs.     

Highly Stable and Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells with 22.0% Efficiency Based on Inorganic–Organic Dopant‐Free Double Hole Transporting Layers

Most of the high performance in perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have only been achieved with two organic hole transporting materials: 2,2′,7,7′‐tetrakis(N,N‐di‐p‐methoxyphenylamine)‐9,9‐spirobifluorene (Spiro‐OMeTAD) and poly(triarylamine) (PTAA), but their high cost and low stability caused by the hygroscopic dopant greatly hinder the commercialization of PSCs. One effective alternative to address this problem is to utilize inexpensive inorganic hole transporting layer (i‐HTL), but obtaining high efficiency via i‐HTLs has remained a challenge. Herein, a well‐designed inorganic–organic double HTL is constructed by introducing an ultrathin polymer layer dithiophene‐benzene (DTB) between CuSCN and Au contact. This strategy not only enhances the hole extraction efficiency through the formation of cascaded energy levels, but also prevents the degradation of CuSCN caused by the reaction between CuSCN and Au electrode. Furthermore, the CuSCN layer also promotes the formation of a pinhole‐free and compact DTB over layer in the CuSCN/DTB structure. Consequently, the PSCs fabricated with this CuSCN/DTB layer achieves the power conversion efficiency of 22.0% (certified: 21.7%), which is among the top efficiencies for PSCs based on dopant‐free HTLs. Moreover, the fabricated PSCs exhibit high light stability under more than 1000 h of light illumination and excellent environmental stability at high temperature (85 °C) or high relative humidity (>60% RH).     

Efficient Inverted Perovskite Solar Cells with a Fill Factor Over 86% via Surface Modification of the Nickel Oxide Hole Contact

The poor interface quality between nickel oxide (NiO_x) and halide perovskites limits the performance and stability of NiO_x-based perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Here a reactive surface modification approach based on the in situ decomposition of urea on the NiO_x surface is reported. The pyrolysis of urea can reduce the high-valence state of nickel and replace the adsorbed hydroxyl group with isocyanate. Combining theoretical and experimental analyses, the treated NiO_x films present suppressed surface states and improved transport energy level alignment with the halide perovskite absorber. With this strategy, NiO_x-based PSCs achieve a champion power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 23.61% and a fill factor of over 86%. The device's efficiency remains above 90% after 2000 h of thermal aging at 85 °C. Furthermore, perovskite solar modules achieve PCE values of 18.97% and 17.18% for areas of 16 and 196 cm², respectively.