Perovskite Solar Cells Incorporated with Urea Processing Additives

Abstract

In the past decade, the photovoltaic community has been motivated by the rapid development of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). Many approaches have been attempted to boost both the power conversion efficiency (PCE) and the stability of PSCs. Studies indicated that the processing additives could optimize the optoelectronic properties and film morphologies of metal halide perovskites, thereby boosting the device performance of PSCs. Herein, we report a boosted PCE and stability of the PSCs based on the MAPbI₃ (where MA⁺ is CH₃NH₃⁺) thin film, which is processed with urea additives. Compared to the pristine MAPbI₃ thin film, we find that the urea additives could suppress defects, enlarge crystallinity, boost charge transport, restrict nonradiative recombination, and enhance the hydrophobic properties of the resultant MAPbI₃ thin film. Thus, the PSCs based on the MAPbI₃ thin film processed with the urea additives exhibit a PCE of 22.02%, which is a 15% enhancement compared to those based on the pristine MAPbI₃ thin film. Moreover, the PSCs based on the MAPbI₃ thin film processed with the urea additives possess a remarkably boosted stability and suppressed photocurrent hysteresis compared to those based on the pristine MAPbI₃ thin film. Our studies demonstrate that metal halide perovskites processed with urea additives are a facile way to enhance the device performance of PSCs.