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Knowledge of the charge-carrier recombination lifetime, tau, is crucial for the various applications of photovoltaic perovskites. We studied the novel inorganic perovskite, CsPbBr3 and we observe recombination dynamics beyond 1 ms below 200 K and tau approaching 100 us at room temperature. Time-resolved microwave-detected photoconductivity decay (TRMCD), used in combination with injection dependence, evidence that tau is dominated by impurity charge trapping. The observed injection dependence is well corroborated by modeling of the trap mechanism. The ultra-long decay time is also consistent with photoconductivity measurements with a continuous-wave excitation at powers corresponding to around one Sun irradiation. While in principle charge-carrier trapping may limit the photovoltaic efficiency in single-cell photovoltaic devices, it could also lead to enhanced efficiency in tandem cells as well as for alternative applications including photodetection and quantum information storage., Comment: 16 pages, 5 figures, submitted to ACS Photonics

Methylammonium lead iodide perovskite has revolutionized the field of third generation solid-state solar cells leading to simple solar cell structures1 and certified efficiencies up to 20.1%. Recently the peculiar light harvesting properties of organometal halide perovskites have been exploited in photodetectors where responsivities of ~3.5 A/W and 180 A/W have been respectively achieved for pure perovskite-based devices and hybrid nanostructures. Here, we report on the first hybrid phototransistors where the performance of a network of photoactive Methylammonium Lead Iodide nanowires (hereafter MAPbI$_3$NW) are enhanced by CVD-grown monolayer graphene. These devices show responsivities as high as ~2.6x10$^6$ A/W in the visible range showing potential as room-temperature single-electron detector.

Field-effect phototransistors were fabricated based on individual carbon nanotubes (CNTs) sensitized by CH$_3$NH$_3$PbI$_3$ nanowires (MAPbI$_3$NW). These devices represent light responsivities of R=7.7x10$^5$ A/W at low-lighting conditions in the nWmm$^{-2}$ range, unprecedented among CNT-based photo detectors. At high incident power (~1 mWmm$^{-2}$), light soaking results in a negative photocurrent, the device turns insulating. We interpret the phenomenon as a result of efficient electron-hole separation and charge transfer of holes from the perovskite to the carbon nanotube, which improves conductance by increasing the number of carriers, but leaves electrons behind. At high illumination intensity the random electrostatic potential of these quench the mobility in the nanotube. The single CNT device geometry allows the local study of the MAPbI$_3$NW/CNT interface for metallic and semiconducting CNTs separately. Infrared and Raman spectroscopy studies of CNT-CH$_3$NH$_3$PbI$_3$ composites revealed that photo-doping takes place at the interface.

The demand for ever-increasing density of information storage and speed of manipulation boosts an intense search for new magnetic materials and novel ways of controlling the magnetic bit. Here, we report the synthesis of a ferromagnetic photovoltaic CH$_3$NH$_3$(Mn:Pb)I$_3$ material in which the photo-excited electrons rapidly melt the local magnetic order through the Ruderman-Kittel-Kasuya-Yosida interactions without heating up the spin system. Our finding offers an alternative, very simple and efficient way of optical spin control, and opens an avenue for applications in low power, light controlling magnetic devices.

Since the discovery of its photovoltaic properties organometallic salt CH$_3$NH$_3$PbI$_3$ became the subject of vivid interest. The material exhibits high light conversion efficiency, it lases in red color, and it can serve as the basis for light emitting diodes and photodetectors. Here we report another surprising feature of this material family, the photo-tunability of the diode response of a heterojunction made of CH$_3$NH$_3$PbI$_3$ and its close relative, CH$_3$NH$_3$SnI$_3$. In the dark state the device behaves as a diode, with the Sn homologue acting as the "p" side. The junction is extremely sensitive to illumination. A complete reversal of the diode polarity, the first observation of its kind, is seen when the junction is exposed to red laser light of 25 mW/cm$^2$ or larger power density. This finding opens up the possibility for a novel class of opto-electronic devices.

The intrinsic d.c. electrical resistivity ($\rho$) - measurable on single crystals only - is often the quantity first revealing the properties of a given material. In the case of CH$_3$NH$_3$PbI$_3$ perovskite measuring $\rho$ under white light illumination provides insight into the coexistence of extended and shallow localized states (0.1 eV below the conduction band). The former ones dominate the electrical conduction while the latter, coming from neutral defects, serve as a long-lifetime charge carrier reservoir accessible for charge transport by thermal excitation. Remarkably, in the best crystals the electrical resistivity shows a metallic behaviour under illumination up to room temperature, giving a new dimension to the material in basic physical studies.

Chemical sensing properties of single wire and mat form sensor structures fabricated from the same carbon nanotube (CNT) materials have been compared. Sensing properties of CNT sensors were evaluated upon electrical response in the presence of five vapours as acetone, acetic acid, ethanol, toluene, and water. Diverse behaviour of single wire CNT sensors was found, while the mat structures showed similar response for all the applied vapours. This indicates that the sensing mechanism of random CNT networks cannot be interpreted as a simple summation of the constituting individual CNT effects, but is associated to another robust phenomenon, localized presumably at CNT-CNT junctions, must be supposed., Comment: 12 pages, 5 figures,Applied Physics A: Materials Science and Processing 2014