Andreas Kaltzoglou

Reentrant Structural and Optical Properties and Large Positive Thermal Expansion in Perovskite Formamidinium Lead Iodide

The structure of the hybrid perovskite HC(NH2 )2 PbI3 (formamidinium lead iodide) reflects competing interactions associated with molecular motion, hydrogen bonding tendencies, thermally activated soft octahedral rotations, and the propensity for the Pb2+ lone pair to express its stereochemistry. High-resolution synchrotron X-ray powder diffraction reveals a continuous transition from the cubic α-phase (Pm3‾ m, #221) to a tetragonal β-phase (P4/mbm, #127) at around 285 K, followed by a first-order transition to a tetragonal γ-phase (retaining P4/mbm, #127) at 140 K. An unusual reentrant pseudosymmetry in the β-to-γ phase transition is seen that is also reflected in the photoluminescence. Around room temperature, the coefficient of volumetric thermal expansion is among the largest for any extended crystalline solid.

Structural Stability, Vibrational Properties, and Photoluminescence in CsSnI3 Perovskite upon the Addition of SnF2

The CsSnI3 perovskite and the corresponding SnF2-containing material with nominal composition CsSnI2.95F0.05 were synthesized by solid-state reactions and structurally characterized by powder X-ray diffraction. Both materials undergo rapid phase transformation upon exposure to air from the black orthorhombic phase (B-γ-CsSnI3) to the yellow orthorhombic phase (Y-CsSnI3), followed by irreversible oxidation into Cs2SnI6 within several hours. The phase transition occurs at a significantly lower rate in the SnF2-containing material rather than in the pure perovskite. The high hole-carrier concentration of the materials prohibits the detection of Raman signals for B-γ-CsSnI3 and induces a very strong plasmonic reflectance in the far-IR. In contrast, far-IR phonon bands and a rich Raman spectrum are observed for the Y-CsSnI3 modification below 140 cm-1 with weak frequency shift gradients versus temperatures between -95 and +170 °C. Above 170 °C, the signal is lost due to B-α-CsSnI3 re-formation. The photoluminescence spectra exhibit residual blue shifts and broadening as a sign of structural transformation initiation.

A silanol-functionalized polyoxometalate with excellent electron transfer mediating behavior to ZnO and TiO 2 cathode interlayers for highly efficient and extremely stable polymer solar cells

Combining high efficiency and long lifetime under ambient conditions still poses a major challenge towards commercialization of polymer solar cells. Here we report a facile strategy that can simultaneously enhance the efficiency and temporal stability of inverted photovoltaic architectures. Inclusion of a silanol-functionalized organic–inorganic hybrid polyoxometalate derived from a PW9O34 lacunary phosphotungstate anion, namely (nBu4N)3[PW9O34(tBuSiOH)3], significantly increases the effectiveness of the electron collecting interface, which consists of a metal oxide such as titanium dioxide or zinc oxide, and leads to a high efficiency of 6.51% for single-junction structures based on poly(3-hexylthiophene):indene-C60 bisadduct (P3HT:IC60BA) blends. The above favourable outcome stems from a large decrease in the work function, an effective surface passivation and a decrease in the surface energy of metal oxides which synergistically result in the outstanding electron transfer mediating capability of the functionalized polyoxometalate. In addition, the insertion of a silanol-functionalized polyoxometalate layer significantly enhances the ambient stability of unencapsulated devices which retain nearly 90% of their original efficiencies (T90) after 1000 hours.

Trimethylsulfonium Lead Triiodide: An Air-Stable Hybrid Halide Perovskite

We report on the synthesis, characterization, and optoelectronic properties of the novel trimethylsulfonium lead triiodide perovskite, (CH3)3SPbI3. At room temperature, the air-stable compound adopts a hexagonal crystal structure with a 1D network of face-sharing [PbI6] octahedra along the c axis. UV-vis reflectance spectroscopy on a pressed pellet revealed a band gap of 3.1 eV, in agreement with first-principles calculations, which show a small separation between direct and indirect band gaps. Electrical resistivity measurements on single crystals indicated that the compound behaves as a semiconductor. According to multi-temperature single-crystal X-ray diffraction, synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, and differential scanning calorimetry, two fully reversible structural phase transitions occur at -5 and ca. -100 °C with reduction of the unit cell symmetry to monoclinic as temperature decreases. The role of the trimethylsulfonium cation regarding the chemical stability and optoelectronic properties of the new compound is discussed in comparison with APbI3 (A = Cs, methylammonium, and formamidinium cation), which are most commonly used in perovskite solar cells.

Insights into the passivation effect of atomic layer deposited hafnium oxide for efficiency and stability enhancement in organic solar cells

Atomic layer deposited hafnium oxide is inserted between the zinc oxide electron transport material and the photoactive blend to serve as an ultra-thin passivation interlayer in organic solar cells with an inverted architecture. The deposition of hafnium oxide significantly improves the surface properties of zinc oxide via effective surface passivation and beneficial modification of surface energy; the latter leads to improved nanomorphology of the photoactive blend. As a result, lower recombination losses and improved electron transport/collection at the cathode interface are achieved. A simultaneous increase in open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current density and fill factor is obtained leading to a power conversion efficiency of 6.30% in the ALD-modified cell using a poly(3-hexylthiophene):indene-C60-bisadduct blend as the photoactive layer; this represents a 25% improvement compared to 5.04% of the reference device. Moreover, the incorporation of the passivation interlayer yields a significant stability enhancement in the fabricated solar cells which retain more than 80% of their initial efficiency (T80 lifetime) after 750 hours while the reference cell exhibits a T80 equal to 250 hours.

Engineering of Porphyrin Molecules for Use as Effective Cathode Interfacial Modifiers in Organic Solar Cells of Enhanced Efficiency and Stability

In the present work, we effectively modify the TiO2 electron transport layer of organic solar cells with an inverted architecture using appropriately engineered porphyrin molecules. The results show that the optimized porphyrin modifier bearing two carboxylic acids as the anchoring groups and a triazine electron-withdrawing spacer significantly reduces the work function of TiO2, thereby reducing the electron extraction barrier. Moreover, the lower surface energy of the porphyrin-modified substrate results in better physical compatibility between the latter and the photoactive blend. Upon employing porphyrin-modified TiO2 electron transport layers in PTB7:PC71BM-based organic solar cells we obtained an improved average power conversion efficiency up to 8.73%. Importantly, porphyrin modification significantly increased the lifetime of the devices, which retained 80% of their initial efficiency after 500 h of storage in the dark. Because of its simplicity and efficacy, this approach should give tantalizing glimpses and generate an impact into the potential of porphyrins to facilitate electron transfer in organic solar cells and related devices.