A Liquid Junction Photoelectrochemical Solar Cell Based on p-Type MeNH3Pbl3 Perovskite with 1.05 V Open-Circuit Photovoltage

A liquid junction photoelectrochemical (PEC) solar cell based on p-type methylammonium lead iodide (p-MeNH3PbI3) perovskite with a large open-circuit voltage is developed. MeNH3PbI3 perovskite is readily soluble or decomposed in many common solvents. However, the solvent dichloromethane (CH2Cl2) can be employed to form stable liquid junctions. These were characterized with photoelectrochemical cells with several redox couples, including I-3(-)/I-, Fc/Fc(+), DMFc/DMFc(+), and BQ/BQ(center dot-) (where Fc is ferrocene, DMFc is decamethylferrocene, BQ is benzoquinone) in CH2Cl2. The solution-processed MeNH3PbI3 shows cathodic photocurrents and hence p-type behavior. The difference between the photocurrent onset potential and the standard potential for BQ/BQ(center dot-) is 1.25 V, which is especially large for a semiconductor with a band gap of 1.55 eV. A PEC photovoltaic cell, with a configuration of p-MeNH3PbI3/CH2Cl2, BQ (2 mM), BQ(center dot-) (2 mM)/carbon, shows an open-circuit photovoltage of 1.05 V and a short-circuit current density of 7.8 mA/cm(2) under 100 mW/cm(2) irradiation. The overall optical-to-electrical energy conversion efficiency is 6.1%. The PEC solar cell shows good stability for 5 h under irradiation.