The Impact of a Dynamic Two-Step Solution Process on Film Formation of Cs 0.15 (MA 0.7 FA 0.3 ) 0.85 PbI 3 Perovskite and Solar Cell Performance

• Published in: Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany) Germany), 2019-03, Vol.15 (9), p.e1804858
• Main Authors: Bing, Jueming, Kim, Jincheol, Zhang, Meng, Zheng, Jianghui, Lee, Da Seul, Cho, Yongyoon, Deng, Xiaofan, Lau, Cho Fai Jonathan, Li, Yong, Green, Martin A, Huang, Shujuan, Ho-Baillie, Anita W Y
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 1613-6810; 1613-6829
• DOI: 10.1002/smll.201804858

This paper provides deep understanding of the formation mechanism of perovskite film fabricated by sequential solution-based methods. It compares two sequential spin-coating methods for Cs (MA FA ) PbI perovskite. First is the "static process," with a stoppage between the two spin-coating steps (1st PbI -CsI-dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)-dimethylformamide (DMF) and 2nd methylammonium iodide (MAI)-formamidinium iodide (FAI)-isopropyl alcohol). Second is the "dynamic process," where the 2nd precursor is dispensed while the substrate is still spinning from the 1st step. For the first time, such a dynamic process is used for Cs (MA FA ) PbI perovskite. Characterizations reveal improved film formation with the dynamic process due to the "retainment" of DMSO-complex necessary for the intermediate phase which i) promotes intercalation between precursors and ii) slows down perovskite crystallization for full conversion. The comparison on as-deposited perovskite before annealing indicates a more ordered film using this dynamic process. This results in a thicker, more uniform film with higher degree of preferred crystal orientation and higher carrier lifetime after annealing. Therefore, dynamic-processed devices present better performance repeatability, achieving a higher average efficiency of 17.0% compared to static ones (15.0%). The new insights provided by this work are important for perovskite solar cells processed sequentially as the process has greater flexibility in resolving solvent incompatibility, allowing separate optimizations and allowing different deposition methods.