Researchers at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing Normal University, Beijing Institute of Technology and ShanghaiTech University have developed a universal hydrogen-bonding-facilitated DMA extraction method to fabricate high-quality γ-CsPbI3 films. The researchers fabricated a solar cell based on cesium-lead iodide (CsPbI₃) perovskite, which is also known as black perovskite.

The black perovskite solar cell reportedly achieved  20.25% efficiency, which is said by the team to be the highest efficiency reported for PV devices built with this perovskite material and a dopant-free hole transport layer based on the P3HT polymer. The cell was also able to retain around 93% of its original efficiency after continuous illumination for 570 h.

Perovskite nanocrystals (PNCs)/polymer nanocomposites can combine the advantages of both materials, but achieving the fabrication of PNCs/polymer nanocomposites by bulk polymerization has proven Very challenging. A team of scientists, led by Professor Bai Yang from Jilin University in China, has adopted a a two-type ligand strategy to fabricate bulk PNCs/polystyrene (PS) nanocomposites, including a new type of synthetic polymerizable ligand.

The CsPbCl₃ PNCs/PS nanocomposites reportedly showed extremely high transparency that can be ascribed to the Rayleigh scattering as the PNCs distribute uniformly without obvious aggregation. Based on this behavior, the team first exploited the potential of PNCs to serve as scatters inside light guided plate (LGP), whose surface illuminance and uniformity can be improved, and this new kind of LGP is compatible with advanced liquid crystal display technology. 

A research team, led by Rice University chemical and biomolecular engineer Aditya Mohite and collaborators at Northwestern University, the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Rennes, reported a process that yields 2D perovskite-based semiconductor layers of ideal thickness and purity by controlling the temperature and duration of the crystallization process.

Known as kinetically controlled space confinement, the process could help improve the stability and reduce the cost of halide perovskite-based emerging technologies like optoelectronics and photovoltaics.

A team of scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory and their colleagues have demonstrated exceptional performance of a new material for detecting high energy X-ray scattering patterns. With excellent endurance under ultra-high X-ray flux and relatively low cost, the detector material may find wide application in synchrotron-based X-ray research.

Recent advancements in X-ray technology enable brighter, more intense beams and imaging of increasingly intricate systems in real-world conditions. To support these advancements, scientists are working to develop X-ray detector materials that can withstand bright, high-energy X-rays — especially those from large X-ray synchrotrons — while maintaining sensitivity and cost-effectiveness.

Stanford researchers have found a way to create and stabilize an extremely rare form of gold that has lost two negatively charged electrons, denoted Au²⁺. The material stabilizing this elusive version of the valued element is a halide perovskite. Surprisingly, the Au²⁺ perovskite is also quick and simple to make using off-the-shelf ingredients at room temperature.

"It was a real surprise that we were able to synthesize a stable material containing Au²⁺—I didn't even believe it at first," said Hemamala Karunadasa, associate professor of chemistry at the Stanford School of Humanities and Sciences and senior author of the study. "Creating this first-of-its-kind Au²⁺ perovskite is exciting. The gold atoms in the perovskite bear strong similarities to the copper atoms in high-temperature superconductors, and heavy atoms with unpaired electrons, like Au²⁺, show cool magnetic effects not seen in lighter atoms."

Researchers from Southeast University in Bangaladesh and U.S-based Rochester Institute of Technology have examined the performance of a lead-free Cs₂TiX₆-based n–i–p type heterostructure perovskite solar cell design, performed using a one-dimensional device simulator, also known as the SCAPS-1D. 

The design makes use of Cs₂TiCl₆ as an n-type front absorber, Cs₂TiI₆ as an I (intrinsic)-layer absorber and Cs₂TiBr₆ as a p-type absorber. NiO (p) and ZnO (n) are utilized as the hole transport material and electron transport material. The fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) acts as a front contact, conductive oxide, while Pt (platinum) is used as the back contact. 

Australia-based Greatcell Solar Materials produces and supplies perovskite materials, and is one of the industry's pioneer companies. We conducted an interviw with Dr. Yanek Hebting, Greatcell's general manager, who updates us on the company's business, material and his views on the perovskite industry.

Hello Dr. Hebting, Thank you for this Q&A. Can you introduce us to Greatcell Solar Materials?

Greatcell Solar Materials Pty Ltd was created in October 2018 as the spin-off of the Materials Division of Greatcell Solar, formerly Dyesol. Greatcell Solar Materials is a manufacturer and supplier of materials (including perovskite precursors, dyes, ligands, titania pastes, electrolytes as well as components) for energy system applications to the photovoltaics research sector and the electronics industry.

All products are manufactured and shipped from our facility in Queanbeyan, NSW Australia.

Can you tell us a bit about the demand for perovskite materials? Does it come mostly for research, or pilot lines?

As COVID restrictions around the world have eased and global activity resumed, the demand for perovskite materials has significantly increased since.
Greatcell Solar Materials provides both bulk quantities for industrial partners as well as small quantities for research purposes. The demand for research purpose will always be a part of the demand, it is exciting to see some pilot lines take fruition and begin the process of commercialization.

Researchers from Duke University, Purdue University,  Yale University, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Westlake University and Huazhong University of Science and Technology have demonstrated that by limiting the arrangement of multiple inorganic and organic layers within crystals using a novel technique, they can regulate the energy levels of electrons and holes (positive charge carriers) within perovskites.

This tuning capability affects the materials’ optoelectronic properties and capacity to emit light of specific energies, as illustrated by their ability to function as a laser source.

Researchers from Japan's Tokyo Institute of Technology, University of Oxford in the UK and Colorado State University in the U.S have shown that α-FAPbI₃, a promising solar cell material with a cubic perovskite structure that is metastable at room temperature, can be stabilized by introducing a pseudo-halide ion like thiocyanate (SCN^–) into its structure. The recent findings provide new insights into the stabilization of the α-phase via grain boundary and pseudo-halide engineering.

A material with good photophysical properties that has recently gained momentum is α-formamidinium lead iodide or α-FAPbI₃ (where FA⁺ = CH(NH₂)₂⁺), a crystalline solid with a cubic perovskite structure. Solar cells made of α-FAPbI₃ exhibit a remarkable 25.8% conversion efficiency and an energy gap of 1.48 eV. Unfortunately, α-FAPbI₃ is metastable at room temperature and undergoes a phase transition to δ-FAPbI₃ when triggered by water or light. The energy gap of δ-FAPbI₃ is much larger than the ideal value for solar cell applications, making the preservation of the α-phase crucial for practical purposes. To overcome this problem, the team of researchers, led by Associate Professor Takafumi Yamamoto from Tokyo Institute of Technology (Tokyo Tech), has recently presented a new strategy for stabilizing α-FAPbI₃.

Researchers from The University of Texas at Austin, University of Pennsylvania and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have addressed the question of how lattice dynamics in layered hybrid perovskites are affected by the dimensional engineering of the inorganic frameworks and their interaction with the molecular moieties. 

The team tackled this question by using a combination of spontaneous Raman scattering, terahertz spectroscopy, and molecular dynamics simulations. This approach reveals the structural dynamics in and out of equilibrium and provides unexpected observables that differentiate single- and double-layered perovskites.