A green solvent enables precursor phase engineering of stable formamidinium lead triiodide perovskite solar cells

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) offer an efficient, inexpensive alternative to current photovoltaic technologies, with the potential for manufacture via high-throughput coating methods. However, challenges for commercial-scale solution-processing of metal-halide perovskites include the use of harmful solvents, the expense of maintaining controlled atmospheric conditions, and the inherent instabilities of PSCs under operation. Here, we address these challenges by introducing a high volatility, low toxicity, biorenewable solvent system to fabricate a range of 2D perovskites, which we use as highly effective precursor phases for subsequent transformation to α-formamidinium lead triiodide (α-FAPbI<sub>3</sub>), fully processed under ambient conditions. PSCs utilising our α-FAPbI<sub>3</sub> reproducibly show remarkable stability under illumination and elevated temperature (ISOS-L-2) and "damp heat" (ISOS-D-3) stressing, surpassing other state-of-the-art perovskite compositions. We determine that this enhancement is a consequence of the 2D precursor phase crystallisation route, which simultaneously avoids retention of residual low-volatility solvents (such as DMF and DMSO) and reduces the rate of degradation of FA<sup>+</sup> in the material. Our findings highlight both the critical role of the initial crystallisation process in determining the operational stability of perovskite materials, and that neat FA<sup>+</sup>-based perovskites can be competitively stable despite the inherent metastability of the α-phase.

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Publication Details

Journal
Nature Communications
Published
2024-11-22
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54113-4
Citations
34
Primary Topic
Perovskite Materials and Applications
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
7.10

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article

A green solvent enables precursor phase engineering of stable formamidinium lead triiodide perovskite solar cells

Igal Levine, Karl‐Augustin Zaininger, M. Greyson Christoforo, Daniel T. W. Toolan et al.
34 citations
Nature Communications
Perovskite Materials and Applications
7.10
article

A green solvent enables precursor phase engineering of stable formamidinium lead triiodide perovskite solar cells

Igal Levine, Karl‐Augustin Zaininger, M. Greyson Christoforo, Daniel T. W. Toolan, Esther Y.-H. Hung, Nakita K. Noel, Benjamin M. Gallant, Rachel C. Kilbride, Saqlain Choudhary, Laura M. Herz, Dominik J. Kubicki, Joel A. Smith, Karim A. Elmestekawy, Pietro Caprioglio, Henry James Snaith, Philippe Holzhey, James M. Ball, Fengning Yang, Alexandra A. Sheader
article en
34 citations

Abstract

Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) offer an efficient, inexpensive alternative to current photovoltaic technologies, with the potential for manufacture via high-throughput coating methods. However, challenges for commercial-scale solution-processing of metal-halide perovskites include the use of harmful solvents, the expense of maintaining controlled atmospheric conditions, and the inherent instabilities of PSCs under operation. Here, we address these challenges by introducing a high volatility, low toxicity, biorenewable solvent system to fabricate a range of 2D perovskites, which we use as highly effective precursor phases for subsequent transformation to α-formamidinium lead triiodide (α-FAPbI<sub>3</sub>), fully processed under ambient conditions. PSCs utilising our α-FAPbI<sub>3</sub> reproducibly show remarkable stability under illumination and elevated temperature (ISOS-L-2) and "damp heat" (ISOS-D-3) stressing, surpassing other state-of-the-art perovskite compositions. We determine that this enhancement is a consequence of the 2D precursor phase crystallisation route, which simultaneously avoids retention of residual low-volatility solvents (such as DMF and DMSO) and reduces the rate of degradation of FA<sup>+</sup> in the material. Our findings highlight both the critical role of the initial crystallisation process in determining the operational stability of perovskite materials, and that neat FA<sup>+</sup>-based perovskites can be competitively stable despite the inherent metastability of the α-phase.

Nature CommunicationsVol. 15(1)
Hebrew University of Jerusalem (IL), Helmholtz-Zentrum Berlin für Materialien und Energie (DE), University of Manchester (GB), University of Oxford (GB), Institute for Advanced Study (DE), University of Birmingham (GB), University of Sheffield (GB)
Diamond Light Source, UK Research and Innovation, European Commission, University of Bath, Horizon 2020 Framework Programme, HORIZON EUROPE Framework Programme, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council
Openalex Percentile: Top 2%
Perovskite Materials and Applications
7.10
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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