abstract:
While lab-scale spin-coating in inert environments has delivered record efficiencies for perovskite solar cells (PSCs) employing self-assembled monolayers (SAMs), their fabrication via fully ambient-air printing—a prerequisite for low-cost industrialization—remains unreported. Here, we report the first PSCs exceeding 26% efficiency based on fully ambient-air printed SAMs and perovskite films and elucidate the governing role of SAM physicochemical properties through fluid-crystallization synergy. SAMs with higher surface energy (γ) flatten the perovskite ink meniscus, attenuating the temperature gradient and Marangoni stress along the gas-liquid interface, thereby enabling more uniform perovskite deposition and smoother films. Simultaneously, γ systematically modulates perovskite crystallization by delaying nucleation onset and shifting the growth mode from continuous to instantaneous on higher-γ SAMs. The fluid–crystallization synergy yields a record power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 26.31% (certified 25.85%), a benchmark for all reported ambient-air printed devices, including non-SAM-based counterparts. The approach further enables scalable fabrication, achieving a champion PCE of 22.3% in 13.04 cm2 mini-modules with over 90% performance retention after 1200 h operation under the ISOS-L-1 protocol. This work establishes a quantitative link between SAM physicochemical properties and perovskite fluid dynamics and crystallization thermodynamics in ambient-air printing, providing guidance for perovskite photovoltaics toward scalable ambient manufacturing.
K. Zhao, L. Xue, J. Liu, X. Gao, S. Wu, Y. Han,* Y. Geng. Langmuir 2010, 26, 471.
Phase Separation in Poly(9,9-dioctylfluorene)/Poly(methyl methacrylate) blends
K. Zhao, G. Zhou, Q. Wang, Y. Han,* L. Wang, D. Ma . Macromol. Chem. Phys. 2010, 211, 313.
K. Zhao, Z. Ding, L. Xue, Y. Han,* . Macrom. Rapid Commun. 2010, 31, 532.
P. Pattanasattayavong†, G. O. Ngongang Ndjawa†, K. Zhao†, K. W. Chou, N. Yaacobi-Gross, B. C. O’Regan, A. Amassian,* T. D. Anthopoulos,* . Chem. Comm. 2013, 49, 4145.
Entanglement of Conjugated Polymer Chains Influences Molecular Self-assembly and Carrier Transport”
K. Zhao, H. U. Khan, R. Li, Y. Su, A. Amassian,* . Adv. Funct. Mater. 2013, 23, 6024.
K. Zhao, G. O. Ngongang Ndjawa, L. K. Jagadamma, A. E. Labban, H. Hu, Q. Wang, R. Li, M. Abdelsamie, P. M. Beaujuge, A. Amassian,* . Nano Energy. 2015, 16, 458.
K. Zhao, R. Munir, B. Yan, A. Amassian,* . J. Mater. Chem. A, 2015, 3, 20554.
Solvent-dependent self-assembly and ordering in slow-drying drop-cast conjugated polymer films
K. Zhao,* X. Yu, R. Li, A. Amassian, Y. Han,*. J. Mater. Chem. C. 2015, 3, 9842.
K. Zhao, D. Ren, O Wodo, H. U. Khan, H. Hu, M. Abdelsamie, M. R. Niazi, R. Li, L. Yu, B. Yan, J. Smith, Q. Wang, E. Li, T. D. Anthopoulos, S. Thoroddsen, B. Ganapathysubramanian, J. E. Anthony, A. Amassian.* , Adv. Funct. Mater. 2015. 26, 1737.