A Facile and Effective Ozone Exposure Method for Wettability and Energy-Level Tuning of Hole-Transporting Layers in Lead-Free Tin Perovskite Solar Cells

Abstract

Lead-free perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have attracted interest among scientists searching for eco-friendly energy harvesting devices. Herein, the effects of ozone exposure on poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PE-DOT:PSS) in lead-free tin halide PSCs as a facile and low-cost process for improving device performance are analyzed. Two types of tin-based PSCs and one typical lead-based PSC were fabricated. The ozone exposure on PEDOT:PSS increases the short-circuit current density (J(SC)) and the fill factor (FF) of PSCs in all cases with perovskite grain enlargement and hole-mobility enhancement of the devices, respectively. For open-circuit voltage (V-OC), the outcome depends on the band gap and the energy levels of the perovskite films. While ozone exposure treatment is favorable for PEA(0.15)FA(0.)(85)SnI(3)-based tin PSCs, V-OC decreases with ozone exposure in the case of Ge:EDA(0.)(01)FA(0.)(98)SnI(3)-based tin PSCs because of a misalignment of the energy levels. Regardless, the efficiency of PEA(0.15)FA(0.)(85)SnI(3)-based tin PSCs increases from 8.7 to 10.1% when measured inside a glovebox upon ozone exposure of PEDOT:PSS. The efficiency of Ge:EDA(0.01)FA(0.98)SnI(3)-based tin PSCs increases from 6.8 to 8.1%, and the devices retain an efficiency of 5.0% even after 50 days in air.