Origin of improved stability and polarization effect in polymer-integrated organic lead halide perovskite

Organometal halide perovskites (ABX3, where A is an organic cation, B is a metal cation and X is the halide anion, such as MAPbI3, where MA is methyl ammonium) have experienced a great upsurge in research due to their excellent optical and electrical properties. For instance, the perovskite solar cells have already achieved a certified power conversion efficiency of 23.7%, and are also being applied in other areas such as lasers, sensors, displays and single-photon sources, photodetectors, X-ray and ?-ray detectors. At present, the most challenging issue in perovskite devices is the long-term stability, which has limited their progression to commercialization. The ion migration under applied electric field and structural degradation due to exposure of light, air, and moisture are the major causes for the instability in the perovskites. We are addressing this problem by using a polymer (polystyrene) that interacts with the perovskite precursors. The interaction is based on the Lewis acid nature of PbI2 that leads to cross linking of the polymer chains within a perovskite film and hence improving its stability under harsh conditions. By using the spatial nanoscale imaging techniques, specifically Piezoresponse Force Microscopy (PFM), and Kelvin Probe Force Microscopy (KPFM) in Israel, I am going

Faculty Supervisor:

Vivek Maheshwari

Student:

Partner:

Technion – Israel Institute of Technology

Discipline:

Physics

Sector:

Education

University:

University of Waterloo

Program: