Sustainable fabrication of ultralong Pb(OH)Br nanowires and their conversion to luminescent CH3NH3PbBr3 nanowires

The fabrication of lead halide perovskites involves different types of organic solvents, which are not only harmful to the environment but also expensive. Herein, we present an ultimately green process to prepare CH3NH3PbBr3 (MAPbBr(3)) nanowires without using any organic solvents, acids, and alkalis. According to the formula of Pb(OH)Br, only PbBr2 and water are used to synthesize Pb(OH)Br. Subsequently, the Pb(OH)Br nanowires are converted into MAPbBr(3) nanowires via a thermal evaporation technique (i.e., exposing Pb(OH)Br nanowires to MABr vapor). The prepared MAPbBr(3) nanowires show comparable optical properties to those prepared using organic solvents. Such an ultimately green fabrication method can alleviate the environmental concerns and reduce the cost of perovskite commercialization.

Automated summary

The researchers proposed an ultimately green process to prepare CH3NH3PbBr3 (MAPbBr(3)) nanowires without using any organic solvents, acids, and alkalis, which involves the use of only PbBr2 and water, and converts Pb(OH)Br nanowires into MAPbBr(3) nanowires via a thermal evaporation technique. The optical properties of the prepared MAPbBr(3) nanowires are comparable to those prepared using organic solvents, making this fabrication method environmentally friendly and cost-effective.