Reducing Open-Circuit Voltage Deficit in Perovskite Solar Cells via Surface Passivation with Phenylhydroxylammonium Halide Salts.

Suppressing non-radiative recombination via passivating surface defects of perovskite films has demonstrated an excellent strategy for high-performance perovskite solar cells (PSCs). However, it is still hard to realize both high open-circuit voltage (Voc ) of >1.2 V and high power conversion efficiency (PCE) of >22%, because the optimized bandgap of perovskite films is less than 1.60 eV for efficient light harvesting and Voc deficit is generally unavoidable due to carriers recombination. Here, the surface of the perovskite film is treated with a series of phenylhydroxylammonium halide salts and it is found that all of them can remarkably prolong the carrier lifetime owing to their excellent capability of surface defects passivation. The best PSC with phenylbutylammonium bromide treatment realizes a PCE of 22.67% with a Voc of 1.216 V, corresponding to a small Voc deficit of ≈344 mV.

Receding Phase and Rebound Behavior for Drop Impact onto an Ultrathin Film.

Experimentally, the recoil phase leading to rebound behavior for drop impact onto ultrathin oil-covered solid surfaces was studied. It was found that the oil film can rupture during the impact process when the contact angle between the drop liquid and substrate is smaller than 90°. Due to such rupture, the substrate wettability of the substrate can affect the behavior of the drop impact. The rupture of the oil film can be promoted by an increase in impact Weber number (We) and a decrease in the film viscosity and thickness. The effect of We, oil viscosity, and film thickness on the rebound behavior of the drop was also investigated. For low-viscous oil films (5 cSt), it was shown that the smooth and circular edge of the liquid lamella is the key parameter affecting the level of rebound. The smooth rim of the lamella can cause an elongated rebound, while a lamella with a jagged rim will result in a stout rebound. For the impact cases onto oil films with medium and high viscosity, the effects of the film viscosity become more important; the rebound type can be suppressed due to the viscous dispassion. We have also shown that silicone oil can cloak the daughter drops generated in the rebound process for the first time. Due to the existence of the oil, the daughter drops do not merge even when they make contact in the air.

Lateral Photodetectors Based on Double-Cable Polymer/Two-Dimensional Perovskite Heterojunction.

Double-cable conjugated polymers and two-dimensional (2D) perovskites are both promising materials for next-generation photodetectors (PDs) due to their solution processibility and tunable optoelectronic properties. In this work, a lateral PD is designed by layering a double-cable conjugated polymer film atop a 2D Ruddlesden-Popper perovskite film. Compared to the corresponding single-layer polymer and perovskite PDs, the heterojunction device exhibits greatly improved performance with a high responsivity of 27.06 A W-1, an on/off ratio of 1379, and a short rise/decay time of 3.53/3.78 ms. In addition, a flexible device using polyimide as the substrate is successfully fabricated and exhibits comparable performance with the device on glass. This work demonstrates the great potential of double-cable polymer/2D perovskite heterojunctions in future flexible optoelectronics.

An Efficient Trap Passivator for Perovskite Solar Cells: Poly(propylene glycol) bis(2-aminopropyl ether).

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are regarded as promising candidates for future renewable energy production. High-density defects in the perovskite films, however, lead to unsatisfactory device performances. Here, poly(propylene glycol) bis(2-aminopropyl ether) (PEA) additive is utilized to passivate the trap states in perovskite. The PEA molecules chemically interact with lead ions in perovskite, considerably passivate surface and bulk defects, which is in favor of charge transfer and extraction. Furthermore, the PEA additive can efficiently block moisture and oxygen to prolong the device lifetime. As a result, PEA-treated MAPbI3 (MA: CH3NH3) solar cells show increased power conversion efficiency (PCE) (from 17.18 to 18.87%) and good long-term stability. When PEA is introduced to (FAPbI3)1-x(MAPbBr3)x (FA: HC(NH2)2) solar cells, the PCE is enhanced from 19.66 to 21.60%. For both perovskites, their severe device hysteresis is efficiently relieved by PEA.

Band engineering at the interface of all-inorganic CsPbI2Br solar cells.

An all-inorganic CsPbI2Br perovskite with excellent phase stability and thermal stability has been considered to be a promising candidate for photovoltaic application. However, low efficiency and high moisture sensitivity hinder its advancement. In this work, we exploit 4-bromobenzylamine hydriodate post-treatment on CsPbI2Br thin films to assist the extraction of holes and to block the flow of electrons to the hole transport layer through band engineering at the CsPbI2Br bulk/surface. We found through depth profile analysis that a small amount of BrBeAI permeates into the CsPbI2Br bulk and mainly locates at the CsPbI2Br grain boundaries. This treatment leads to an improved short-circuit current of CsPbI2Br solar cells and an enhanced efficiency from 13.10% to 14.63%. In addition, the incorporation of the hydrophobic organic component into perovskite films effectively enhances the moisture resistance. This result proves that utilizing organic ammonium salt to improve the performance of the device through band alignment is an effective strategy for all-inorganic perovskite solar cell optimization.

High-Performance Planar Perovskite Solar Cells with Negligible Hysteresis Using 2,2,2-Trifluoroethanol-Incorporated SnO2.

An efficient electron transport layer (ETL) between the perovskite absorber and the cathode plays a crucial role in obtaining high-performance planar perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Here, we incorporate 2,2,2-trifluoroethanol (TFE) in the commonly used tin oxide (SnO2) ETL, and it successfully improves the power conversation efficiency (PCE) and suppresses the hysteresis of the PSCs: the PCE is increased from 19.17% to 20.92%, and the hysteresis is largely reduced to be almost negligible. The origin of the enhancement is due to the improved electron mobility and optimized work function of the ETL, together with the reduced traps in the perovskite film. In addition, O2 plasma is employed to treat the surface of the TFE-incorporated SnO2 film, and the PCE is further increased to 21.68%. The concept here of incorporating organic small molecules in the ETL provides a strategy for enhancing the performance of the planar PSCs.

Room Temperature Electroluminescence from Tensile-Strained Si0.13Ge0.87/Ge Multiple Quantum Wells on a Ge Virtual Substrate.

Direct band electroluminescence (EL) from tensile-strained Si0.13Ge0.87/Ge multiple quantum wells (MQWs) on a Ge virtual substrate (VS) at room temperature is reported herein. Due to the competitive result of quantum confinement Stark effect and bandgap narrowing induced by tensile strain in Ge wells, electroluminescence from Γ1-HH1 transition in 12-nm Ge wells was observed at around 1550 nm. As injection current density increases, additional emission shoulders from Γ2-HH2 transition in Ge wells and Ge VS appeared at around 1300-1400 nm and 1600-1700 nm, respectively. The peak energy of EL shifted to the lower energy side superquadratically with an increase of injection current density as a result of the Joule heating effect. During the elevation of environmental temperature, EL intensity increased due to a reduction of energy between L and Γ valleys of Ge. Empirical fitting of the relationship between the integrated intensity of EL (L) and injection current density (J) with L~Jm shows that the m factor increased with injection current density, suggesting higher light emitting efficiency of the diode at larger injection current densities, which can be attributed to larger carrier occupations in the Γ valley and the heavy hole (HH) valance band at higher temperatures.