All Issue

2025 Vol.13, Issue 3 Preview Page
The Passivation Effect on Perovskite Solar Cells Using Single-Molecular Additives with Double Carboxylic Ester Groups

이중 카르복실 에스터기를 가지는 단분자 첨가제를 이용한 페로브스카이트 태양전지에 대한 부동퇴화 효과 연구

Jeong-Seok Nam1
,
Kanghyeok Lee2
,
Mina Kim1
,
Ying Tian1
,
Il Jeon12*
남 정석1
,
이 강혁2
,
김 민아1
,
Tian Ying1
,
전 일12*
1SKKU Advanced Institute of Nanotechnology (SAINT), Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU), Suwon, 16419, Korea
2Department of Future Energy Engineering (DFEE), Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU), Suwon, 16419, Korea
1성균나노과학기술원 (SAINT), 성균관대학교, 수원, 16419
2미래에너지공학과, 성균관대학교, 수원, 16419
*Corresponding Author
30 September 2025. pp. 126-131
PDF XML Citation
Abstract

In this study, a di-carboxylic ester additive with a symmetric structure was introduced into perovskite solar cells, and the resulting changes in the optoelectronic properties of the devices were investigated. NMR and DFT analyses revealed that the synthesized additive possesses a nonpolar benzene ring, which is expected to facilitate favorable stacking characteristics. Upon incorporation of this additive, PCE of the devices improved from 10.48% to 11.66%. However, FF decreased from 68.27% to 64.37%. Further analyses, including dark current measurements, light-intensity–dependent current–voltage characteristics, and SCLC fitting, indicated that the additive effectively reduces trap states not only in the perovskite absorber layer but also in the PEDOT:PSS hole transport layer. Therefore, the reduction in FF appears to be attributed not to the formation of traps but rather to a mismatch between the perovskite hole energy level and the elevated quasi-Fermi level of holes in the HTL induced by trap-state reduction. These findings suggest that the additive may exert additional effects, which warrant further investigation.

Keywords
Perovskite
Passivation
Single molecule additive
Solar cells
References
1

J. H. Lee, N. C. Bristowe, J. H. Lee, S. H. Lee, P. D. Bristowe, A. K. Cheetham, H. M. Jang, Resolving the physical origin of octahedral tilting in halide perovskites. Chem. Mater. 28(12), 4259-4266 (2016).

10.1021/acs.chemmater.6b00968
2

H. J. Snaith, A. Abate, J. M. Ball, G. E. Eperon, T. Leijtens, N. K. Noel, S. D. Stranks, J. T. W. Wang, K. Wojciechowski, W. Zhang, Anomalous hysteresis in perovskite solar cells. J. Phys. Chem. Lett. 5(9), 1511-1515 (2014).

10.1021/jz500113x
3

N. K. Noel, S. D. Stranks, A. Abate, C. Wehrenfennig, S. Guarnera, A. A. Haghighirad, A. Sadhanala, G. E. Eperon, S. K.Pathak, M. B. Johnston, A. Petrozza, L. M. Herz, H. J. Snaith, Lead-free organic–inorganic tin halide perovskites for photovoltaic applications. Energy Environ. Sci. 7(9), 3061-3068 (2014).

10.1039/C4EE01076K
4

W. Nie, H. Tsai, R. Asadpour, J. C. Blancon, A. J. Neukirch, G. Gupta, J. J. Crochet, M. Chhowalla, S. Tretiak, M. A. Alam, H. L. Wang, A. D. Mohite, High-efficiency solution-processed perovskite solar cells with millimeter-scale grains. Science. 347(6221), 522-525 (2015).

10.1126/science.aaa0472
5

D. Liu, T. L. Kelly, Perovskite solar cells with a planar heterojunction structure prepared using room-temperature solution processing techniques. Nat. Photonics 8(2), 133-138 (2013).

10.1038/nphoton.2013.342
6

NREL. Best Research-Cell Efficiency Chart. https://www.nrel.gov/pv/assets/pdfs/best-research-cell-efficiencies-rev210726.pdf (accessed on 24 September 2021).

7

W. J. Mir, M. Jagadeeswararao, S. Das, A. Nag, Colloidal mn-doped cesium lead halide perovskite nanoplatelets. ACS Energy Lett. 2(3), 537-543 (2017).

10.1021/acsenergylett.6b00741
8

J. R. Swierk, K. P. Regan, J. Jiang, G. W. Brudvig, C. A. Schmuttenmaer, Rutile TiO2 as an anode material for water-splitting dye-sensitized photoelectrochemical cells. ACS Energy Lett. 1(3), 603-606 (2016).

10.1021/acsenergylett.6b00279
9

W. J. Yin, J. H. Yang, J. Kang, Y. Yan, S. H. Wei, Halide perovskite materials for solar cells: A theoretical review. J. Mater. Chem. A 3(17), 8926-8942 (2015).

10.1039/C4TA05033A
10

M. A. Truong, T. Funasaki, Y. Adachi, S. Hira, T. Tan, A. Akatsuka, T. Yamada, Y. Iwasaki, Y. Matsushige, R. Kaneko, C. Asahara, T. Nakamura, R. Murdey, H. Yoshida, Y. Kanemitsu, A. Wakamiya, Molecular design of hole-collecting materials for co-deposition processed perovskite solar cells: A tripodal triazatruxene derivative with carboxylic acid groups. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 147(3), 2797-2808 (2025).

10.1021/jacs.4c15857
11

D. An, C. Guo, Y. Chen, Analysis of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) mixtures using diffusion-ordered nmr spectroscopy and adsorption by powdered activated carbon and biochar. Mater. 11(4), 460 (2018).

10.3390/ma1104046029561761PMC5951306
12

Q. Jiang, Y. Zhao, X. Zhang, X. Yang, Y. Chen, Z. Chu, Q. Ye, X. Li, Z. Yin, J. You, Surface passivation of perovskite film for efficient solar cells. Nat. Photonics, 13(7), 460-466 (2019).

10.1038/s41566-019-0398-2
13

A. Razzaq, A. Ullah, A. S. Subbiah, S. De Wolf, Practical fill factor limits for perovskite solar cells. ACS Energy Lett. 9(11), 5635-5638 (2024).

10.1021/acsenergylett.4c02757
14

J. S. Nam, Y. Seo, J. Han, J. W. Lee, K. Kim, T. Rane, H. D. Kim, I. Jeon, Exploring endohedral metallofullerenes for advanced thin-film device applications toward next-generation electronics†. Chem. Mater. 35(20), 8323-8337 (2023).

10.1021/acs.chemmater.3c01192
15

J. S. Nam, W.Jang, Jang, J. Han, B. G. Kim, J. H. Lim, D. Kim, I. Chung, D. H. Wang, I. Jeon, Enhanced photodetection and air stability of lead-free tin perovskite photodiodes via germanium incorporation and organic cation-mediated dimensionality control. Adv. Funct. Mater. 34(44), 2407299 (2024).

10.1002/adfm.202407299
16

F. P. Gokdemir Choi, H. Moeini Alishah, S. Bozar, C. Doyranli, S. Koyuncu, N. San, C. Kahveci, M. Cantürk Rodop, M. B. Arvas, M. Gencten, Y. Sahin, S. Gunes, A novel interface layer for inverted perovskite solar cells fabricated in ambient air under high humidity conditions. Sol. Energy 209, 400-407 (2020).

10.1016/j.solener.2020.08.013
17

M. Abdi-Jalebi, M. I. Dar, S. P. Senanayak, A. Sadhanala, Z. Andaji-Garmaroudi, L. M. Pazos-Outón, J. M. Richter, A. J. Pearson, H. Sirringhaus, M. Grätzel, R. H. Friend, Charge extraction via graded doping of hole transport layers gives highly luminescent and stable metal halide perovskite devices. Sci. Adv. 5(2), eaav2012 (2019).

10.1126/sciadv.aav201230793032PMC6377269
Information
  • Publisher :Korea Photovoltaic Society
  • Publisher(Ko) :한국태양광발전학회
  • Journal Title :Current Photovoltaic Research
  • Volume : 13
  • No :3
  • Pages :126-131
  • Received Date : 2025-05-09
  • Revised Date : 2025-09-12
  • Accepted Date : 2025-09-12
  • DOI :https://doi.org/10.21218/CPR.2025.13.3.126
Journal Informaiton Current Photovoltaic Research Current Photovoltaic Research
Online Submission
  • NRF
  • KISTI Current Status
  • KISTI Cited-by
  • crosscheck
  • orcid
  • open access
  • ccl
Journal Informaiton Journal Informaiton - close