Effect of ultraviolet radiation on organic photovoltaic materials and devices
ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces American Chemical Society 11:24 (2019) 21543-21551
Abstract:
Organic photovoltaics are a sustainable and cost-effective power-generation technology that may aid the move to zero-emission buildings, carbon neutral cities, and electric vehicles. While state-of-the-art organic photovoltaic devices can be encapsulated to withstand air and moisture, they are currently still susceptible to light-induced degradation, leading to a decline in the long-term efficiency of the devices. In this study, the role of ultraviolet (UV) radiation on a multilayer organic photovoltaic device is systematically uncovered using spectral filtering. By applying long-pass filters to remove different parts of the UV portion of the AM1.5G spectrum, two main photodegradation processes are shown to occur in the organic photovoltaic devices. A UV-activated process is found to cause a significant decrease in the photocurrent across the whole spectrum and is most likely linked to the deterioration of the charge extraction layers. In addition, a photodegradation process caused by UV-filtered sunlight is found to change the micromorphology of the bulk heterojunction material, leading to a reduction in photocurrent at high photon energies. These findings strongly suggest that the fabrication of inherently photostable organic photovoltaic devices will require the replacement of fullerene-based electron transporter materials with alternative organic semiconductors.Time-resolved THz spectroscopy of metal-halide perovskite single crystals and polycrystalline thin films
Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 00 (2019) 1-2
Elucidating the long-range charge carrier mobility in metal halide perovskite thin films
Energy and Environmental Science Royal Society of Chemistry 12:1 (2018) 169-176
Abstract:
Many optoelectronic properties have been reported for lead halide perovskite polycrystalline films. However, ambiguities in the evaluation of these properties remain, especially for long-range lateral charge transport, where ionic conduction can complicate interpretation of data. Here we demonstrate a new technique to measure the long-range charge carrier mobility in such materials. We combine quasi-steady-state photo-conductivity measurements (electrical probe) with photo-induced transmission and reflection measurements (optical probe) to simultaneously evaluate the conductivity and charge carrier density. With this knowledge we determine the lateral mobility to be ∼2 cm2 V−1 s−1 for CH3NH3PbI3 (MAPbI3) polycrystalline perovskite films prepared from the acetonitrile/methylamine solvent system. Furthermore, we present significant differences in long-range charge carrier mobilities, from 2.2 to 0.2 cm2 V−1 s−1, between films of contemporary perovskite compositions prepared via different fabrication processes, including solution and vapour phase deposition techniques. Arguably, our work provides the first accurate evaluation of the long-range lateral charge carrier mobility in lead halide perovskite films, with charge carrier density in the range typically achieved under photovoltaic operation.Electronic traps and phase segregation in lead mixed-halide Perovskite
ACS Energy Letters American Chemical Society 4:1 (2018) 75-84
Abstract:
An understanding of the factors driving halide segregation in lead mixed-halide perovskites is required for their implementation in tandem solar cells with existing silicon technology. Here we report that the halide segregation dynamics observed in the photoluminescence from CH3NH3Pb(Br0.5I0.5)3 is strongly influenced by the atmospheric environment, and that encapsulation of films with a layer of poly(methyl methacrylate) allows for halide segregation dynamics to be fully reversible and repeatable. We further establish an empirical model directly linking the amount of halide segregation observed in the photoluminescence to the fraction of charge carriers recombining through trap-mediated channels, and the photon flux absorbed. From such quantitative analysis we show that under pulsed illumination, the frequency of the modulation alone has no influence on the segregation dynamics. Additionally, we extrapolate that working CH3NH3Pb(Br0.5I0.5)3 perovskite cells would require a reduction of the trap-related charge carrier recombination rate to ≲105s–1 in order for halide segregation to be sufficiently suppressed.Temperature-dependent refractive index of quartz at terahertz frequencies
Journal of Infrared, Millimeter and Terahertz Waves Springer Verlag 39:12 (2018) 1236-1248