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Solution-processed quasi-two-dimensional (quasi-2D) perovskites with self-assembled multiple quantum well (QW) structures exhibit enhanced exciton binding energy, which is ideal for use as light emitters. Here, we have found that postannealing is important to promoting the QWs' composition transfer, and we explored the correlation among the annealing time, the external quantum efficiency (EQE), and the operational stability of the device. During thermal annealing, the low-n QWs will gradually convert to high-n phases, accompanied by an increase in grain size. The EQE and working stability of the device exhibit different annealing-time dependences; that is, with the extension of the annealing time, the EQE gradually decreases while the working stability improves. By introducing trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate (TPTA) to passivate the emitting-region defects, the annealing-time dependence of the EQE was effectively eliminated due to the reduction of the nonradiative recombination rate, wherefore high efficiency and stability can be achieved simultaneously. Our research provides an effective way to develop highly efficiency and stable perovskite light-emitting diodes.

Quasi two-dimensional (2D) lead halide perovskite materials have shown outstanding performance in various photoelectric devices, including perovskite light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and perovskite optical pumping lasers. Due to the structure diversity of bulky organic cation, the photoelectric property for quasi-2D perovskite materials is flexible to be tuned. The spontaneously formed quantum-well structures allow rapid and efficient energy funneling from low-n domains to high-n domains, contributing to high exciton utilization for perovskite LEDs and low threshold for amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) and optical pumping perovskite lasers. Moreover, the hydrophobic bulky organic cations benefit to improve the environmental and operating stability owning to the better moisture tolerance and defects passivation ability. In this review, we will primarily introduce the quasi-2D lead halide perovskite materials from the structure to their optical and electrical properties. Then, we will focus on the advances of optical pumping lasers based on quasi-2D lead halide perovskite materials as gain mediums. Especially, more attention will be paid to perovskite lasers using distributed feedback (DFB) and distributed Bragg reflector (DBR) cavities. Furthermore, the key issues to realize quasi-2D perovskite-based electrical pumping lasers will be discussed.

Quasi-two dimensional perovskites demonstrate unique excitonic properties due to their multilayer structure making them attractive for various optoelectronic applications. However, the thickness of individual perovskite sheets in wet cast quasi-2D layers tends to randomly fluctuate giving rise to a specific type of disorder, which impacts on the carrier dynamics and is rather complex and remains understudied. Here, we present a study of carrier transport in Ruddlesden–Popper type (PEA)2FAn−1PbnBr3n+1 layers of order n from one to four, and in the bulk FAPbBr3 layer. We use a light induced transient grating technique to measure the carrier diffusion coefficient directly, and the transient absorption via photoluminescence to investigate the energy relaxation pathways. We observe two distinct energy transfer processes on different time scales. Fast energy funnelling in thicker (n ≥ 3) layers is observed up to 10 ps after excitation; we attribute this to short-distance transfer of excitons to neighbouring perovskite sheets of higher order. On the longer timescale of hundreds of picoseconds, carrier in-plane transport is governed by exciton diffusion in n = 1 and 2 layers and by free carrier plasma in thicker ones. Within the carrier density range of (0.5–4) × 1019 cm−3, the exciton diffusion coefficient in n = 1, 2 increases slowly from 1 to 2.8 cm2 s−1, whereas in thicker layers the dependence is much stronger and the diffusivity grows from 0.09 to 1.9 cm2 s−1. We explain these dependencies by a higher structural order in the thinner samples and the stronger localization of carriers in thicker ones. Also, amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) is observed in thicker (n ≥ 3) layers in electron–hole plasma, as evidenced by the typical ASE line redshift upon excitation.

Organic–inorganic lead halide quasi-two-dimensional (2D) perovskites are promising gain media for lasing applications because of their low cost, tunable colour, excellent stability and solution processability1–3. Optically pumped continuous-wave (CW) lasing is highly desired for practical applications in high-density integrated optoelectronics devices and constitutes a key step towards electrically pumped lasers4–6. However, CW lasing has not yet been realized at room temperature because of the ‘lasing death’ phenomenon (the abrupt termination of lasing under CW optical pumping), the cause of which remains unknown. Here we study lead halide-based quasi-2D perovskite films with different organic cations and observe that long-lived triplet excitons considerably impede population inversion during amplified spontaneous emission and optically pumped pulsed and CW lasing. Our results indicate that singlet–triplet exciton annihilation is a possible intrinsic mechanism causing lasing death. By using a distributed-feedback cavity with a high quality factor and applying triplet management strategies, we achieve stable green quasi-2D perovskite lasers under CW optical pumping in air at room temperature. We expect that our findings will pave the way to the realization of future current-injection perovskite lasers. Lead halide-based quasi-two-dimensional perovskite films with different organic cations are used to create stable green lasers under continuous-wave optical pumping in air at room temperature.

Perovskites show exciting potential for photoelectric applications, especially for light-emitting diodes (LEDs), owing to their intrinsically high photoluminescence efficiency and color purity. Wit...

Tin iodide perovskite CH3NH3SnI3 is often considered as a replacement for toxic lead halide perovskites. Tin iodide is not only suitable for production of solar cells, but also it emits in the near...

Heat management of optoelectronic devices is of critical significance in lead halide perovskites due to the intrinsically low thermal conductivity of this material. Despite its importance, thermal conductivity remains understudied, particularly in polycrystalline perovskite layers with different halides. Here, we employ a novel method for investigation of thermal properties in perovskite layers, which is based on a light-induced transient diffraction grating technique. We demonstrate the applicability of thermal grating technique by determining in an all-optical way the thermo-optic coefficient, speed of sound, and thermal conductivity in vapor-deposited polycrystalline layers of MAPbX3 (X = Cl, Br, I), MAPbBr2I, and MAPbCl2Br perovskites. We reveal the spatial anisotropy of thermal conductivity, which is noticeably lower in the direction along the layer surface (0.2–0.5 W/(m K)) if compared to that across the layer (0.3–1.1 W/(m K)). Finally, we demonstrate that for both directions the thermal conductivi...

This work investigates the feasibility of using low-dimensional perovskites for electrically driven lasers given the current status of perovskite light-emitting diodes and optically pumped lasers. ...

The current status of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and related analysis on perovskite solar cells (PSC) is still unsatisfactory. The provided models are still vague and not really helpful for guiding the efforts to develop more efficient and stable devices. Due to the slow and complex dynamics of these devices, the obtained spectra need to be validated, which is hardly ever done. This study may be the first to provide fully validated impedance spectra and presents reproducible EIS time series at open circuit voltage (VOC) for more than 20 hours, with a total of 140 analysed spectra. We conclude that the observed changes stem from a temporary reduction of the electronically active area of the devices, as can be deduced from the inverse behaviour of resistance and capacitance. The changes in these values are almost 100% reversible if the devices are kept in the dark for only one day, while the time constant of the high-frequency process remains unchanged throughout the whole characterization procedure. The tested devices are full PSC devices that have proven to be stable over more than 500 hours, and the non-steady impedance measurements shine a critical light on previously published EIS data. With the results of this study, it can be rationalized that the high-frequency semicircle can serve as a good indicator for ionic migration by monitoring its consequences. The results presented here are helpful to quantify ionic migration on the device level in order to derive new stability criteria and countermeasures against degradation.

This paper proposes a novel conceptual system of optical wireless power transfer (OWPT) between objects, which is different from the existing OWPT systems such that a single device—an optical transceiver—is employed. This optical transceiver, which is capable of both absorbing and emitting light, is fabricated from a metal halide perovskite known for its superior features that can help significantly reduce the whole system size and cost. The proposed system contributes to realizing a thing-to-thing OWPT network, in which surfaces of objects/things are covered by perovskite transceivers (fully or partially), enabling them to wirelessly charge or discharge from the others.

Carrier mobility is one of the crucial parameters determining the electronic device performance. We apply the light-induced transient grating technique to measure independently the carrier diffusion coefficient and lifetime, and to reveal the impact of additives on carrier transport properties in wet-cast CH3NH3PbI3 (MAPbI3) perovskite films. We use the high excitation regime, where diffusion length of carriers is controlled purely by carrier diffusion and not by the lifetime. We demonstrate a four-fold increase in diffusion coefficient due to the reduction of localization center density by additives; however, the density dependence analysis shows the dominance of localization-limited diffusion regime. The presented approach allows us to estimate the limits of technological improvement—carrier diffusion coefficient in wet-cast layers can be expected to be enhanced by up to one order of magnitude.

In this study, we investigate the nanoscale effects of photochemically active additives of benzoquinone (BQ), hydroquinone (HQ), and tetracyanoquinodimethane (TCNQ) on grain boundaries in CH3NH3PbI3 solar cells. We employ scanning probe microscopy under light illumination, in particular Kelvin probe force microscopy, to study surface potential changes under laser light illumination. The recently found improvement in the efficiency of BQ added solar cells can be clearly seen in vanishing contact potential differences at grain boundaries under illumination, rendering the material more uniform under solar cell operating conditions. These effects are observed for BQ, but not for HQ and TCNQ. Our findings shed light onto halide perovskite materials and the functional additive design for improved solar cell performance.

Organo-metal-halide perovskites are a promising set of materials for optoelectronic applications such as solar cells, light emitting diodes and lasers. Perovskite thin films have demonstrated amplified spontaneous emission thresholds as low as 1.6 μJ cm-2 and lasing thresholds as low as 0.2 μJ cm-2. Recently the performance of perovskite light emitting diodes has rapidly risen due to the formation of quasi 2D films using bulky ligands such as phenylethylammonium. Despite the high photoluminescent yield and external quantum efficiency of quasi 2D perovskites, few reports exist on amplified spontaneous emission. We show within this report that the threshold for amplified spontaneous emission of quasi 2D perovskite films increases with the concentration of phenylethylammonium. We attribute this increasing threshold to a charge transfer state at the PEA interface that competes for excitons with the ASE process. Additionally, the comparatively slow inter-grain charge transfer process cannot significantly contribute to the fast radiative recombination in amplified spontaneous emission. These results suggest that relatively low order PEA based perovskite films that are suitable for LED applications are not well suited for lasing applications. However high order films were able to maintain their low threshold values and may still benefit from improved stability.

The optical, structural, and electroluminescent (EL) characteristics of pure quasi-2D CsPb2Br5 were reported. We fabricated continuous, compact, well-crystallized CsPb2Br5 films by centrifugal coating from a colloidal solution containing CsPb2Br5 nanoparticles. The centrifugal-coated CsPb2Br5 films have a photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) of ∼35% because of its low-dimensional structure. Taking advantage of the high PLQY, we fabricated perovskite light-emitting diodes (PeLEDs) with a centrifugal-coated CsPb2Br5 emitting layer exhibiting bright green EL, a maximum luminance of 7317 cd m–2, an and external quantum efficiency of 1.1%. Additionally, the EL color could be changed easily from green to red using a halogen exchange method. The half lifetime of our CsPb2Br5 PeLEDs reached around 6 h under continuous operation at 10 mA cm–2.

Metal halide perovskites are attractive materials for the realization of cheap and effective solar cells, thin film transistors, and light emitters. Carrier diffusion at high excitations, however, is poorly addressed in perovskites, even though it governs the diffusion length and determines the efficiency of photonic devices. To fully understand the dependence of diffusion length on carrier density, we performed direct and independent measurements of the carrier diffusion coefficient and recombination rate in several methylammonium lead-halide perovskite layers by applying the light-induced transient grating technique. We demonstrate the existence of two distinct carrier diffusion regimes within the density range of 1018–1020 cm–3. In the perovskite films of high compositional quality, diffusion is governed by a bandlike transport of free carriers. The diffusivity is high (0.28–0.7 cm2/s) in these samples, even at low carrier density, and further increases with excitation due to carrier degeneracy. The op...

Organo-lead-halide perovskites are promising materials for optoelectronic applications. Perovskite solar cells have reached power conversion efficiencies of over 22%, and perovskite light-emitting diodes have recently achieved over 11% external quantum efficiency. To date, most research on perovskite light-emitting diodes has focused on solution-processed films. There are many advantages of a vapor-based growth process to prepare perovskites, including ease of patterning, ability to batch process, and material compatibility. We investigated an all-vapor perovskite growth process by chemical vapor deposition and demonstrated luminance up to 560 cd/m2.

Perovskite light-emitting diodes are promising for next-generation lighting and displays because of their high colour purity and performance1. Although the management of singlet and triplet excitons is fundamental to the design of efficient organic light-emitting diodes, the nature of how excitons affect performance is still not clear in perovskite2–4 and quasi-two-dimensional (2D) perovskite-based devices5–9. Here, we show that triplet excitons are key to efficient emission in green quasi-2D perovskite devices and that quenching of triplets by the organic cation is a major loss path. Employing an organic cation with a high triplet energy level (phenylethylammonium) in a quasi-2D perovskite based on formamidinium lead bromide yields efficient harvesting of triplets. Furthermore, we show that upconversion of triplets to singlets can occur, making 100% harvesting of electrically generated excitons potentially possible. The external quantum and current efficiencies of our green (527 nm) devices reached 12.4% and 52.1 cd A−1, respectively. Careful harvesting of triplet excitons allows the realization of efficient green-emitting quasi-2D perovskite LEDs.

In article number 1801079, Chuanjiang Qin, Chihaya Adachi, and co‐workers adopt thermally stimulated current and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements to reveal that carrier traps are generated in solar cells with CH3NH3PbI3 as a light absorber after operation at 85°C, which is higher than its phase transition temperature. Perovskite alloys‐based solar cells with improved thermal stability under a standard thermal cycling test are demonstrated.

A very high hole mobility of 15 cm2 V-1 s-1 along with negligible hysteresis are demonstrated in transistors with an organic-inorganic perovskite semiconductor. This high mobility results from the well-developed perovskite crystallites, improved conversion to perovskite, reduced hole trap density, and improved hole injection by employing a top-contact/top-gate structure with surface treatment and MoOx hole-injection layers.

We demonstrate that double spin coating, where a perovskite film is covered with another perovskite film, can increase substrate coverage from 81% to 97% along with an increase of film thickness from 151 ± 17 to 246 ± 18 nm. The increased substrate coverage by double coating improves the solar power conversion efficiency from 7.1 ± 0.6 to 10.3 ± 1.0%, an approximate 1.5-fold increase. Additionally, a double-coated film of higher substrate coverage exhibits amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) while a single-coated film of lower substrate coverage does not exhibit ASE. Double coating is an attractive method for increasing substrate coverage and improving solar power conversion and ASE.

Excess/unreacted lead iodide (PbI2 ) has been commonly used in perovskite films for the state-of-the-art solar cell applications. However, an understanding of intrinsic degradation mechanisms of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) containing unreacted PbI2 has been still insufficient and, therefore, needs to be clarified for better operational durability. Here, it is shown that degradation of PSCs is hastened by unreacted PbI2 crystals under continuous light illumination. Unreacted PbI2 undergoes photodecomposition under illumination, resulting in the formation of lead and iodine in films. Thus, this photodecomposition of PbI2 is one of the main reasons for accelerated device degradation. Therefore, this work reveals that carefully controlling the formation of unreacted PbI2 crystals in perovskite films is very important to improve device operational stability for diverse opto-electronic applications in the future.

A power conversion efficiency of over 20% has been achieved in CH3NH3PbI3‐based perovskite solar cells (PSC), however, low thermal stability associated with the presence of a phase transition between tetragonal and cubic structures near room temperature is a major issue that must be overcome for future practical applications. Here, the influence of the phase transition on the thermal stability of PSCs is investigated in detail by comparing four kinds of perovskite films with different compositions of halogen atoms and organic components. Thermally stimulated current measurements reveal that a large number of carrier traps are generated in solar cells with the perovskite CH3NH3PbI3 as a light absorber after operation at 85 °C, which is higher than the phase‐transition temperature. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy measurements further exclude effects of a possible morphology change on the formation of carrier traps. These carrier traps are detrimental to the thermal stability. The thermogravimetric analysis does not show a decomposition for any of the materials in the temperature range relevant for operation. The perovskite alloys do not have this phase transition, resulting in effectively suppressed formation of carrier traps. PSCs with improved thermal stability under the standard thermal cycling test are demonstrated.

We show that the introduction of benzoquinone (BQ) into an organic-inorganic perovskite film greatly enhances both power conversion efficiency and stability of solar cells. The morphology and crystal quality of the perovskite films were improved because intermolecular interaction between methylammonium iodide and BQ slowed the rate of perovskite crystal formation. Further, electron transfer from perovskite to BQ reduces charge recombination losses, and the oxidizing ability of BQ effectively suppresses the formation of metallic lead, a source of carrier traps, under continuous solar irradiation. Through BQ addition, the conversion efficiency was enhanced from 10.7% to 15.6% and lifetime extended about twenty-six times.

The development of host materials with high performance is essential for fabrication of efficient and stable organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). Although host materials used in OLEDs are typically organics, in this study, it is shown that the organic-inorganic perovskite CH3 NH3 PbCl3 (MAPbCl3 ) can be used as a host layer for OLEDs. Vacuum-evaporated MAPbCl3 films have a wide band gap of about 3 eV and very high and relatively balanced hole and electron mobilities, which are suitable for the host material. Photoluminescence and electroluminescence take place through energy transfer from MAPbCl3 to an organic emitter in films. Incorporation of an MAPbCl3 host layer into OLEDs leads to a reduction of driving voltage and enhancement of external quantum efficiency as compared to devices with a conventional organic host layer. Additionally, OLEDs with an MAPbCl3 host layer demonstrate very good operational stability under continuous current operation. These results can be extensively applied to organic- and perovskite-based optoelectronics.

Degradation mechanisms of CH3 NH3 PbI3 -based planar perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are investigated using a thermally stimulated current technique. Hole traps lying above the valence-band edge of the CH3 NH3 PbI3 are detected in PSCs degraded by continuous simulated solar illumination. One source of the hole traps is the photodegradation of CH3 NH3 PbI3 in the presence of water.

Morphological control of organic–inorganic perovskite layers is crucial for efficient planar solar cells. In this study, we show that hot isostatic pressing (HIP) of perovskite layers using a pressure of 200 MPa in 90 °C water is very effective for improving the perovskite film morphology. After HIP treatment, undesirable pin holes and spatial gaps between crystals in the perovskite layers were significantly reduced. Improved crystallinity and enhanced diffusion lengths for both electrons and holes were also confirmed in the HIP-treated perovskite layers. Solar cells containing the perovskite layers as light absorbers were fabricated and characterized under simulated solar light (AM1.5G, 100 mW cm−2). The HIP treatment induced a marked enhancement of short-circuit current density, open-circuit voltage, fill factor, and power conversion efficiency because of the improved morphology and crystallinity and enhanced carrier diffusion. The HIP-treated solar cells achieved efficiencies of 10.6 ± 0.7%, which are about 1.5 times higher than those of the untreated solar cells (7.20 ± 0.59%).

Despite the sky-rocketing efficiencies being reported for perovskite solar cells (PSSCs) with several different configurations recently, it is as yet unclear which configuration will prove beneficial over others. In this work, we report a novel, inverted PSSC with the configuration of FTO/NiO/meso-Al2O3/CH3NH3PbI3/PCBM/BCP/Ag. The first implementation of the hybrid interfacial layer of an ultrathin NiO compact layer (10–20 nm) plus an inert mesoporous Al2O3 (meso-Al2O3) scaffold, featuring high optical transparency and specific dual blocking effect, leads to minimal light absorption loss and interfacial recombination loss. The device performance has been significantly improved with respect to the control PSSCs without the meso-Al2O3 layer. Synchronized improvements in photovoltage, photocurrent and fill factor lead to a high efficiency of >13%, which is the highest reported so far for NiO based PSSCs. Small hysteresis and stable power output under working conditions have been demonstrated for this type of solar cells. The results also highlight the general and critical importance of interfacial control in PSSCs, and their effects on device performance.

Organic-inorganic perovskites have emerged as an interesting class of materials that have excellent photovoltaic properties for application to solar cells. The power conversion efficiency of perovskite solar cells over 20% has already been realized through systematic optimization of materials and fabrication processes. However, the long-term stability of perovskite solar cells still need to be improved for practical applications. In this study, we introduced a multifunctional benzoquinone (BQ) additive into a precursor solution containing methylammonium iodide (MAI) and lead iodide (PbI2) used for spin-coating of perovskite films. Resulting spin-coated perovskite films containing BQ had the improved perovskite morphology and crystal quality because of intermolecular interaction between MAI and BQ slowing the rate of perovskite crystal formation. Therefore, we obtained the greatly enhanced power conversion efficiency from 10.7% to 15.6%. The reduced charge recombination loss by electron transfer from perovskite to BQ is another source of the improved efficiency. In addition to the efficiency enhancement, the BQ addition led to the extended lifetime about twenty-six times. The lifetime, at which efficiency reduces to 80% of the initial under the one-sun condition (100 mW/cm2 and AM1.5G), reached about 4000 h, one of the longest lifetimes ever reported in perovskite solar cells. The extended lifetime can be explained by the reduced formation of carrier traps originating from metallic lead during solar irradiation as the results of thermally stimulate current measurements. We believe that the present findings offer insight to help obtain efficient, stable organic-inorganic perovskite solar cells for future applications.

On a planar substrate the sequential deposition of CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite is optimized by retarding the crystallization of PbI2. This strategy overcomes the problem of incomplete conversion and uncontrolled particle sizes of perovskite in the absence of mesoporous scaffolds, greatly increasing the film reproducibility. Highly efficient and reproducible planar-structured perovskite solar cells were obtained with the best efficiency of 13.5%, average efficiency of 12.5% and a small standard deviation of 0.57 from a total of 120 cells.

Metal halide perovskites are promising as the emitter for efficient light-emitting diodes (LEDs). However, the operational stability of perovskite LEDs (Pe-LEDs) is still very low and, therefore, needs to be improved for future practical applications through the clarification of their basic degradation mechanisms. In this study, we investigated the stability of quasi-two-dimensional (q2D) perovskite films under three different conditions, i.e., carrier injection only, photoexcitation only, and photoexcitation in combination with carrier injection. As a result of the aforementioned comparison, we found that excited states (Wannier excitons) formed in q2D perovskite films by photoexcitation are relatively unstable. On the other hand, no degradation of q2D perovskite films was observed when electrons or holes were injected without the formation of excited states. The unstable excited states were associated with the change from the q2D phase to the three-dimensional phase and the formation of metallic lead working as an excited-state quencher in films. Furthermore, the excited-state stability became worse when the excited states and the charge carriers coexisted in films. This would be one of the reasons for the low stability of q2D Pe-LEDs under continuous electrical operation.

The material 2-phenylethylammonium tin iodide perovskite (C6H5C2H4NH3)2SnI4 [abbreviated as (PEA)2SnI4] has shown promising performance as a polycrystalline semiconductor for field-effect transistors (FETs). However, grain boundaries and structural disorder in polycrystalline films limit performance, and so the fundamental upper bounds of the material are yet to be studied. Here, we prepared large crystals of (PEA)2SnI4 for FETs and demonstrated carrier mobilities of 40 cm2 V−1 s−1 or higher, although with a low fabrication yield (< 1%). Our crystal FETs were very stable when stored in air and when operated under a bias in vacuum. The FET characteristics were superior to those of reported FETs based on polycrystalline perovskite films, and these results contribute to a better understanding of basic carrier transport mechanisms in hybrid perovskite materials.

Large electron injection barriers and electrode degradation are serious issues that need to be overcome to obtain n-channel operation in field-effect transistors with an organic-inorganic layered perovskite (C6H5C2H4NH3)2SnI4 semiconductor. By employing low-work-function Al source/drain electrodes and by inserting C60 layers between the perovskite semiconductor and the Al electrodes to reduce the injection barrier and to suppress the electrode degradation, we demonstrate n-channel perovskite transistors with electron mobilities of up to 2.1 cm2/V s, the highest value ever reported in spin-coated perovskite transistors. The n-channel transport properties of these transistors are relatively stable in vacuum but are very sensitive to oxygen, which works as electron traps in perovskite and C60 layers. In addition, grazing-incidence X-ray scattering and thermally stimulated current measurements revealed that crystallite size and electron traps largely affect the n-channel transport properties.

We have recently focused our attention on the application of perovskite materials to a semiconducting layer in field-effect transistors. Because perovskite materials are expected to promise the processability and flexibility inherent to organic semiconductors as well as the superior carrier transport inherent to inorganic semiconductors, we believe that organic semiconductor-like cost-effective, flexible transistors with inorganic semiconductor-like high carrier mobility can be realized using perovskite semiconductors in future. In this study, we have prepared the tin iodide-based perovskite as a semiconducting layer on silicon dioxide layers treated with a self-assembled monolayer containing ammonium iodide terminal groups by spin coating and, then, source-drain electrodes on the perovskite layer by vacuum deposition for the fabrication of a top-contact perovskite transistor. Because of a well-developed perovskite layer formed on the treated substrate and reduced contact resistance resulting from the top-contact structure, we have obtained a new record hole mobility of up to 12 cm2 V–1 s–1 in our perovskite transistors, which is about five times higher than a previous record hole mobility and is considered to be a very good value when compared with widely investigated organic transistors. Along with the high hole mobility, we have demonstrated that this surface treatment leads to smaller hysteresis in output and transfer characteristics and better stress stability under constant gate voltage application. These findings open the way for huge advances in solution-processable high-mobility transistors.

Device stability of planar perovskite solar cells is improved by virtue of multifunctional BQ additive. The morphology and crystal quality of the perovskite films are improved because BQ slows the rate of perovskite crystal formation. Electron transfer from perovskite to BQ reduces charge-recombination losses, and the oxidizing ability of BQ effectively suppresses the formation of metallic lead and improves device lifetime.

Organic-inorganic hybrid halide perovskites are an interesting class of materials that have excellent semiconductor properties, and demonstrated promising applications on many fields, such as solar cells, water photolysis, light emitting diodes, and amplified spontaneous emission. So far, the device lifetime is still short, and this is an important key issue faced for all researchers in this field.[1] The deep understanding of their durability and degradation mechanism is critical and necessary toward future applications. Towards development of efficient and long-term stable perovskite solar cells (PSCs), we firstly studied the relationship between crystallization, morphology, device architecture, efficiency and durability of encapsulated PSCs. Furthermore, the degradation mechanism of the devices was elucidated by different experimental methods. The well crystallized and fully covered perovskite layer improves not only power conversion efficiency but also long-time durability. Compared to a widely used silver counter electrode, lithium fluoride/aluminum and gold electrode-based PSCs demonstrated better durability owing to less chemical degradation and interface changing. We also confirmed that the amount of accumulated charge carriers induces the degradation of the PSCs, which was proved by a thermally stimulated current technique. Finally, we realized a planar PSC with excellent durability by improving device encapsulation and optimizing device structures. Reference: 1. M. Gratzel, Nature Materials 2014, 13, 838-842.

The true performance of field-effect transistors with spin-coated organic–inorganic perovskite (C6H5C2H4NH3)2SnI4 semiconductor layers remains unknown because of the presence of contact resistance (R C). To evaluate the intrinsic carrier mobility (μ), we fabricated perovskite transistors with large channel lengths (L). The field-effect μ gradually increased with increasing L and then became constant in the large-L region, because of the reduced contribution of R C relative to the total resistance. The intrinsic μ values estimated from this region reached 26 and 4.8 cm2 V−1 s−1 for holes and electrons, respectively, which are the highest ever reported in any perovskite transistor.

A uniform and pinhole-free hole-blocking layer is necessary for high-performance perovskite-based thin-film solar cells. In this study, we investigated the effect of nanoscale pinholes in compact TiO2 layers on the device performance. Surface morphology and film resistance studies show that TiO2 compact layers fabricated using atomic layer deposition (ALD) contain a much lower density of nanoscale pinholes than layers obtained by spin coating and spray pyrolysis methods. The ALD-based TiO2 layer acts as an efficient hole-blocking layer in perovskite solar cells; it offers a large shunt resistance and enables a high power conversion efficiency of 12.56%.