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In this work, Sb2S3 thin films were successfully prepared by chemical bath deposition (CBD) using the mixing solution of SbCl3 and sodium citrate as a novel Sb source. The influence of the solution chemical composition, deposition process parameters, CdS thin film microstructure on the properties of Sb2S3 thin films and the photovoltaic performance of the corresponding solar cells was systematically investigated. The CBD growth mechanism of Sb2S3 thin films was explored from the thickness increase and the molar ratio evaluation of Sb–O : Sb–S/O. The result revealed that the CBD growth process of Sb2S3 thin films was dominated by the nanoparticle formation–adsorption pathway. When the SbCl3 concentration was 120 mM, the molar ratio of SbCl3 : sodium citrate : Na2S2O3 : thioacetamide was 1 : 2.3 : 1.5 : 0.5, the growth solution volume was 48 mL, the growth temperature and time were 90 °C and 6 h, and the Sb2S3 solar cell with the architecture of FTO/CdS/Sb2S3/spiro-OMeTAD:TMT-TTF/Au achieved a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 7.63%, along with an open-circuit voltage of 0.78 V, a short-circuit photocurrent density of 16.89 mA cm−2, and a fill factor of 0.58. The PCE of 7.63% was relatively high in Sb2S3 solar cells and the application for the mixing solution of SbCl3 and sodium citrate as the Sb source can open up a broad space for the preparation of antimony chalcogenide thin films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An electron transport layer (ETL) is vital for extracting carriers in perovskite solar cells (PSCs). SnO2 with high electron mobility and excellent energy level matching with adjacent perovskites has been considered as an ideal electron transport material with excellent application prospects. However, some surface defects always exist on the SnO2 films prepared by a solution method, which will cause non-radiative recombination at the ETL/perovskite interface. Herein, an interfacial engineering strategy is adopted to eliminate the surface defects and improve the interface performance by modifying the SnO2 with ammonium polyacrylate (PANH4). After the PANH4 treatment, the interfacial defects of the SnO2/perovskite film were reduced significantly and the electron transport was effectively facilitated by the denser SnO2 layer, finally improving the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of PSCs. Besides, the grain size of the perovskite increases, simultaneously improving the stability of the device. As a result, the PCE of PSCs with an active area of 0.09 cm2 was increased from 18.91% to 20.70%. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, porous and amorphous Sb2S3 thin films were successfully prepared by the pyrolysis of the antimony-butyldithiocarbamate complex in ethanol at 160 °C for 30 min and can be converted to full-coverage and crystalline Sb2S3 thin films at 300 °C for 2 min. P3HT was introduced into spiro-OMeTAD to improve the hole mobility of the hole transporting material. The full-coverage and crystalline Sb2S3 thin film solar cells achieved a photoelectric conversion efficiency of 5.65% with spiro-OMeTAD: P3HT and 5.28% with spiro-OMeTAD. The preparation and conversion of the porous and amorphous Sb2S3 thin films can provide a broad space for the doping of Sb2S3 and the construction of the hybrid Sb2S3 thin films. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three asymmetric spiro[fluorene-9,9′-xanthene] (SFX)-based hole transporting materials (HTMs) with N-(p-methoxyphenyl)-N′-(9,9′-dimethylfluoren-2-yl)amino (FPA) substituents, which are termed SFX-F, SFX-FM, and SFX-FP, have been synthesized by a facile process. When modifying the number and position of FPA substituents in the HTMs, it was found that there is no significant variation in the HOMO energy by increasing the number of FPA groups, while the thermal stability is governed by the substitution position. SFX-FM, which contains two meta-substituted FPA groups on the xanthene unit, exhibits a suitable HOMO energy level (−5.24 eV) and a strikingly high Tg (154 °C). In addition, SFX-FM also shows better film-forming properties and excellent hydrophobicity, which is conducive to fabricating high-performance devices. Noticeably, the PSCs based on SFX-FM achieved a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 17.29% under AM 1.5 G illumination at 100 mW cm−2, unprecedentedly outperforming PSCs based on spiro-OMeTAD (15.14%). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two organic hole-transporting materials comprising a two-dimensional triphenylene core and methoxyl-arylamine terminal units are developed and applied in perovskite solar cells. Enhanced photovoltaic and stability performance are obtained using TPH-T compared with those of spiro-OMeTAD. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]