Titanium dioxide is on the most studied material due to its wide range of applications in various fields such as self cleaning, photocatalysis, solar cell, water splitting, bio-implants, etc. In order to increase its efficiency in water splitting and solar cell, it is necessary to understand the crystal structure and electronic properties in thin films. In our approach we are investigating the X-ray linear dichroism (XLD) of thin layers of TiO2. XLD studies have been done in multiferroics, antiferromagnetic, and ferromagnetic materials, but a very less amount of work have been done in studying XLD effect of TiO2 thin films. These layers are grown by in-situ atomic layer deposition (ALD) system and are investigated with X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS) at BESSY II, Berlin. ALD is a promising technique to grow thin films on different substrates conveniently due to its uniform deposition property. XAS study will also help us to better understand the interfacial electronic properties of thin films of TiO2.
We show recent results of our in-situ investigations where the role of substrate chemistry in ALD is outlined. While the usual strategy to develop new properties of ALD films is to find new precursors or new procedures, the influence of substrate chemistry on the growth properties of ALD films has been often underestimated. This has principally a technical reason, as the usual characterization methods (QMS, FTIR, ellipsometry) are only weakly sensitive to the substrate, and a characterization of substrates before ALD is often not possible. Thanks to the use of in-situ characterization methods, including photoemission and X-ray absorption spectroscopy with synchrotron radiation, we are able to determine chemical properties of substrates before ALD and after either half or complete ALD cycles. The substrate chemistry influences the standard Al2O3 ALD with TMA and water [1,2], as well as the TiO2 ALD with TTIP and either water, O2 or O2-plasma.
[1] M. Tallarida, K. Kukli, M. Michling, M. Ritala, M. Leskelä and D. Schmeisser, Chem. Mater. 23, 3159 (2011);
[2] M. Tallarida, C. Adelmann, A. Delabie, S. van Elshocht, M. Caymax, and D. Schmeisser, Appl. Phys. Lett. 92, 042906 (2011).
The most efficient and stable perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are made from a complex mixture of precursors. Typically, to then form a thin film, an extreme oversaturation of the perovskite precursor is initiated to trigger nucleation sites, e.g., by vacuum, an airstream, or a so-called antisolvent. Unfortunately, most oversaturation triggers do not expel the lingering (and highly coordinating) dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), which is used as a precursor solvent, from the thin films; this detrimentally affects long-term stability. In this work, (the green) dimethyl sulfide (DMS) is introduced as a novel nucleation trigger for perovskite films combining, uniquely, high coordination and high vapor pressure. This gives DMS a universal scope: DMS replaces other solvents by coordinating more strongly and removes itself once the film formation is finished. To demonstrate this novel coordination chemistry approach, MAPbI3 PSCs are processed, typically dissolved in hard-to-remove (and green) DMSO achieving 21.6% efficiency, among the highest reported efficiencies for this system. To confirm the universality of the strategy, DMS is tested for FAPbI3 as another composition, which shows higher efficiency of 23.5% compared to 20.9% for a device fabricated with chlorobenzene. This work provides a universal strategy to control perovskite crystallization using coordination chemistry, heralding the revival of perovskite compositions with pure DMSO.
Perovskite solar cells (PSCs) excel in achieving high open-circuit voltages (VOC) for narrow bandgaps (∼1.6 eV) but face challenges with wide-bandgap perovskites, like methylammonium lead trichloride (MAPbCl3) with a 3.03 eV bandgap. These materials are transparent in visible absorbing ultraviolet (UV) light. However, achieving uniform film crystallization remains a hurdle. Here, we enhance MAPbCl3 crystallization by manipulating annealing atmospheres (nitrogen, air, and MACl vapor). Excess MACl vapor improves surface coverage, which is crucial for film stability. We demonstrate that the microstructure of the perovskite film, including surface morphology, grain boundaries, and interfaces, can affect the photovoltaic properties. The subsequently obtained VOC of 1.78 V is the highest recorded for single-junction PSCs to the best of our knowledge. Surprisingly, the conventional hole-transport layer spiro-OMeTAD, optimized for narrow bandgaps, sustains such high voltages. Photoluminescence measurements reveal a trap-assisted recombination peak at 1.65 eV, indicating deep traps as significant to voltage loss in MAPbCl3.