Lead halide perovskite solar cells now show excellent efficiencies and encouraging levels of stability. Further improvements in performance require better control of the trap states which are ...considered to be associated with vacancies and defects at crystallite surfaces. Herein, a reflection on the ways in which these traps can be mitigated is presented by improving the quality of the perovskite layer and interfaces in fully assembled device configurations. In this review, the most recent design strategies reported in the literature, which have been explored to tune grain orientation, to passivate defects, and to improve charge‐carrier lifetimes, are presented. Specifically, the advances made with single‐cation, mixed‐cation and/or mixed‐halide, and 3D/2D bilayer‐based light absorbers are discussed. The interfacial, compositional, and band alignment engineering along with their consequent effects on the open‐circuit voltage, power conversion efficiency, and stability are a particular focus.
Despite the record efficiency exceeding 25%, the long‐term operational stability of perovskite solar cells is limited by the degradation mechanisms accelerated by the presence of vacancies and defects. In this review, recent engineering strategies ranging from grains to interfaces that mitigate degradation and improve efficiencies are discussed.
Light emission is a critical property that must be maximized and controlled to reach the performance limits in optoelectronic devices such as photovoltaic solar cells and light‐emitting diodes. ...Halide perovskites are an exciting family of materials for these applications owing to uniquely promising attributes that favor strong luminescence in device structures. Herein, the current understanding of the physics of light emission in state‐of‐the‐art metal‐halide perovskite devices is presented. Photon generation and management, and how these can be further exploited in device structures, are discussed. Key processes involved in photoluminescence and electroluminescence in devices as well as recent efforts to reduce nonradiative losses in neat films and interfaces are discussed. Finally, pathways toward reaching device efficiency limits and how the unique properties of perovskites provide a tremendous opportunity to significantly disrupt both the power generation and lighting industries are outlined.
Lead‐halide perovskites have demo‐nstrated rapid rises in optoelectronic device performance, which directly links to their efficient luminescence properties. The current understanding of the physics of light emission in perovskites is discussed, along with current outstanding challenges and opportunities to push device performances beyond existing technologies.
Understanding the charge-separation mechanism in organic photovoltaic cells (OPVs) could facilitate optimization of their overall efficiency. Here we report the time dependence of the separation of ...photogenerated electron hole pairs across the donor-acceptor heterojunction in OPV model systems. By tracking the modulation of the optical absorption due to the electric field generated between the charges, we measure ∼200 millielectron volts of electrostatic energy arising from electron-hole separation within 40 femtoseconds of excitation, corresponding to a charge separation distance of at least 4 nanometers. At this separation, the residual Coulomb attraction between charges is at or below thermal energies, so that electron and hole separate freely. This early time behavior is consistent with charge separation through access to delocalized π-electron states in ordered regions of the fullerene acceptor material.
The power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of single‐junction organic solar cells (OSC) have now reached over 18%. This rapid recent progress can be attributed to the development of new nonfullerene ...electron acceptors (NFAs) that are paired with suitable high performing polymer electron donors. Substantial improvements in the PCEs and long‐term stability enabled by NFA OSCs have allowed the development and integration of these systems into many niche and novel applications. Here, the recent progress that has been made in understanding the device photophysics of high performing polymer:NFA blends is highlighted. As the bulk heterojunction morphology is intrinsically linked to the device photophysics, this review focuses on studies that have provided noteworthy morphological insights using advanced techniques such as solid‐state NMR and resonant soft X‐ray scattering. Through this, some of the major challenges that must be overcome to attain PCEs of over 20% in NFA OSCs are addressed.
The power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of single‐junction organic solar cells have now reached over 18%. Recent progress that has been made in understanding the morphology and the device photophysics of high performing polymer:non‐fullerene acceptor blends and some of the major challenges that must be overcome to attain PCEs of over 20% are highlighted.
The recombination of electrons and holes is a major loss mechanism in photovoltaic devices that controls their performance. We review scientific literature on bimolecular recombination (BR) in bulk ...heterojunction organic photovoltaic devices to bring forward existing ideas on the origin and nature of BR and highlight both experimental and theoretical work done to quantify its extent. For these systems, Langevin theory fails to explain BR, and recombination dynamics turns out to be dependent on mobility, temperature, electric field, charge carrier concentration, and trapped charges. Relationships among the photocurrent, open-circuit voltage, fill factor, and morphology are discussed. Finally, we highlight the recent emergence of a molecular-level picture of recombination, taking into account the spin and delocalization of charges. Together with the macroscopic picture of recombination, these new insights allow for a comprehensive understanding of BR and provide design principles for future materials and devices.
Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) promise highly efficient lighting and display technologies. We introduce a new class of linear donor-bridge-acceptor light-emitting molecules, which enable ...solution-processed OLEDs with near-100% internal quantum efficiency at high brightness. Key to this performance is their rapid and efficient utilization of triplet states. Using time-resolved spectroscopy, we establish that luminescence via triplets occurs within 350 nanoseconds at ambient temperature, after reverse intersystem crossing to singlets. We find that molecular geometries exist at which the singlet-triplet energy gap (exchange energy) is close to zero, so that rapid interconversion is possible. Calculations indicate that exchange energy is tuned by relative rotation of the donor and acceptor moieties about the bridge. Unlike other systems with low exchange energy, substantial oscillator strength is sustained at the singlet-triplet degeneracy point.
Easily processed materials with the ability to transport excitons over length scales of more than 100 nanometers are highly desirable for a range of light-harvesting and optoelectronic devices. We ...describe the preparation of organic semiconducting nanofibers comprising a crystalline poly(di-
-hexylfluorene) core and a solvated, segmented corona consisting of polyethylene glycol in the center and polythiophene at the ends. These nanofibers exhibit exciton transfer from the core to the lower-energy polythiophene coronas in the end blocks, which occurs in the direction of the interchain π-π stacking with very long diffusion lengths (>200 nanometers) and a large diffusion coefficient (0.5 square centimeters per second). This is made possible by the uniform exciton energetic landscape created by the well-ordered, crystalline nanofiber core.