Regulation of Crystallization Kinetics via Zwitterionic Additive for Efficient and Operationally Stable Formamidinium Perovskite Solar Cells
ABSTRACT Formamidinium (FA)‐based perovskite absorbers possess near‐ideal bandgaps for high‐performance solar cell applications; however, controlling their crystallization kinetics remains a critical bottleneck toward unlocking their full potential. Conventionally, methylammonium chloride (MACl) is introduced as a volatile crystallization additive to promote desired α‐phase formation despite severe drawbacks, including rapid nucleation, residual impurities, and associated defects. Here we introduce a zwitterionic additive, 2‐chloro‐1‐(3‐sulfopropyl)pyridinium (Cl‐PPS), that controls perovskite crystallization through cooperative coordination and hydrogen‐bonding interactions within the perovskite precursor solution. Cl‐PPS induces a uniform colloidal network that enables controlled nucleation, promotes direct α‐phase transformation, and passivates bulk and interfacial defects. The resulting films exhibit enhanced crystallinity, preferential vertical orientation, and a homogeneous potential landscape. Consequently, devices incorporating Cl‐PPS achieve a power conversion efficiency of 26.61%. Furthermore, the encapsulated devices retain 97.1% of their initial efficiency after 1200 h of continuous MPPT operation at 65°C in air.
Authors
- S Y Li
- Bohong Chang
- Jianqiu Gong (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7464-1570)
- N Wang
- Baoze Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7348-8428)
- Danpeng Gao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6633-8782)
- Bo Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5802-7519)
- Xianglang Sun (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0002-1018-5945)
- Moran Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6406-1983)
- Zexin Yu
- Dong Zhang
- Zonglong Zhu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8285-9665)
- Xinhui Lu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1908-3294)
- Liangchen Qian
- Chunlei Zhang
- Haipeng Lu
- Francesco Vanin
Institutions
- Central South University (CN)
- Hong Kong Polytechnic University (HK)
- City University of Hong Kong (HK)
- Chinese University of Hong Kong (HK)
- Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HK)
- Ministry of Education (RO)
- City University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen Research Institute (CN)
- University of Hong Kong (HK)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Advanced Energy Materials
- Published
- 2026-05-21
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/aenm.71105
- Primary Topic
- Perovskite Materials and Applications
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00