Strain Regulation and Defect Passivation of FA-Based Perovskite Materials for Highly Efficient Solar Cells

Formamidine lead triiodide (FAPbI3) perovskites have attracted increasing interest for photovoltaics attributed to the optimal bandgap, high thermal stability, and the record power conversion efficiency (PCE). However, the materials still face several key challenges, such as phase transition, lattice defects, and ion migration. Therefore, external ions (e.g., cesium ions (Cs+)) are usually introduced to promote the crystallization and enhance the phase stability. Nevertheless, the doping of Cs+ into the A-site easily leads to lattice compressive strain and the formation of pinholes. Herein, trioctylphosphine oxide (TOPO) is introduced into the precursor to provide tensile strain outside the perovskite lattice through intermolecular forces. The special strain compensation strategy further improves the crystallization of perovskite and inhibits the ion migration. Moreover, the TOPO molecule significantly passivates grain boundaries and undercoordinated Pb2+ defects via the forming of POPb bond. As a result, the target solar cell devices with the synergistic effect of Cs+ and TOPO additives have achieved a significantly improved PCE of 22.71% and a high open-circuit voltage of 1.16 V (voltage deficit of 0.36 V), with superior stability under light exposure, heat, or humidity conditions. High-quality FA-based perovskite films with few lattice defects, free of strain and suppressed ion migration are successfully obtained by adding Cs+ and TOPO molecule simultaneously, resulting in a high-power conversion efficiency of 22.71% for solar cells with a significantly improved operational stability.image

Automated summary

This study introduces trioctylphosphine oxide (TOPO) into the precursor to provide tensile strain outside the perovskite lattice, improving crystallization and inhibiting ion migration. The TOPO molecule also passivates grain boundaries and undercoordinated Pb2+ defects. The synergistic effect of Cs+ and TOPO additives significantly enhances the performance of the solar cells.