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Letter

Enhanced Hole Extraction in Perovskite Solar Cells Through Carbon Nanotubes Severin N. Habisreutinger, Tomas Leijtens, Giles E. Eperon, Samuel David Stranks, Robin J. Nicholas, and Henry J. Snaith J. Phys. Chem. Lett., Just Accepted Manuscript • DOI: 10.1021/jz5021795 • Publication Date (Web): 06 Nov 2014 Downloaded from http://pubs.acs.org on November 10, 2014

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The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters is published by the American Chemical Society. 1155 Sixteenth Street N.W., Washington, DC 20036 Published by American Chemical Society. Copyright © American Chemical Society. However, no copyright claim is made to original U.S. Government works, or works produced by employees of any Commonwealth realm Crown government in the course of their duties.

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The Journal of Physical Chemistry Letters

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Enhanced Hole Extraction in Perovskite Solar

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Cells Through Carbon Nanotubes

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Severin N. Habisreutinger1, Tomas Leijtens1, Giles E. Eperon1, Samuel D. Stranks1, Robin J.

4

Nicholas1 & Henry J. Snaith1*

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1

University of Oxford, Department of Physics, Clarendon Laboratory, Parks Road, Oxford

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OX1 3PU, United Kingdom

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*[email protected]

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ABSTRACT

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Here, we report on an approach for employing polymer-wrapped carbon nanotubes to

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enhance charge extraction through an undoped, amorphous hole-conductor matrix enabling

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good solar cell performance to be achieved without doping of the hole-conductor. We give

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insights into the mechanisms of how a stratified two-layer approach composed of a network

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of nanotubes and a layer of undoped spiro-OMeTAD facilitates rapid hole extraction.

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KEYWORDS: Perovskite solar cells, single-walled carbon nanotubes, hole-transporting

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material, spiro-OMeTAD, photovoltaics

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MAIN TEXT

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Perovskite solar cells have experienced skyrocketing performance gains in the past two

3

years.1,2 The perovskite material CH3NH3PbI3 made from mixed halide precursors has the

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remarkable ability to function both as a wide-range absorber and as an ambipolar charge

5

transporter.3–5 It can therefore be coated onto an electronically inert alumina scaffold

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resulting in ‘meso-superstructured solar cells’ (MSSCs) in which charge generation and

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transport both happen within the perovskite material.4 After photogeneration, both electrons

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and holes reside in the bulk of the perovskite. To be effectively extracted and to avoid

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recombination losses the perovskite layer needs to be contacted with charge-selective n-type

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and p-type materials, which exhibit low resistive losses. The current best practice employs a

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p-type

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spirobifluorene (spiro-OMeTAD) as the hole transport layer (HTL). The low intrinsic charge

13

carrier mobility of amorphous organic hole-conductors can be overcome to a certain extent

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by increasing the carrier density by oxidative doping.6–8 However, we have demonstrated

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previously, that the stability of a perovskite solar cell depends crucially on the ability of the

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hole-transporter to withstand the ingress of moisture at elevated temperatures.9 In particular,

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in the presence of hygroscopic dopants such as Li-TFSI, moisture-induced degradation is

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significantly accelerated. By using a protective polymer matrix for protection in conjunction

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with single-walled carbon nanotubes for charge extraction, we demonstrated a strategy to

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significantly improve the overall stability of perovskite solar cells.9

organic

hole-conductor,

2,2’,7,-7’-tetrakis(N,N-di-p-methoxyphenylamine)-9,9’-

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In the following study, we elucidate the rationale and basic mechanism for employing a

22

two-layered structure of polymer-wrapped carbon nanotubes embedded within an organic

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matrix, and show that the nanotubes can fully replace any doping previously required for

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efficient devices. As model system for the organic matrix, we use undoped spiro-OMeTAD -

25

which can conduct holes but at much slower rates compared to carbon nanotubes. Using the 2 ACS Paragon Plus Environment

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device performance of perovskite solar cells as well as photoinduced absorption spectroscopy

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and small perturbation photocurrent decays, we propose a mechanism for the enhanced

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charge extraction in a two-layer approach, which has the potential to serve as a model

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structure for a range of applications in which carbon nanotubes conduct charges.

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We employ poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) wrapping to make the SWNTs dispersible in

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common solvents.10 Such supramolecular nanohybrids (P3HT/SWNT) composed of SWNTs

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and a polymer-coating have been shown previously to enhance the performance of certain

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organic solar cells as additives.11,12 Because the energy levels of the wrapping sheath of

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P3HT make the electron transfer from the perovskite to the SWNTs energetically

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unfavorable, the polymer coating should lead to selective hole-transfer to the nanotubes

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(Supporting information).11

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The solar cell structure employed in this study is shown schematically in Figure 1, where

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sequential layers of compact n-type TiO2, mesoporous Al2O3, perovskite CH3NH3PbI3-xClx,

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and SWNT-hole conductor composite are coated on to fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) glass.

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Figure 1: a) Schematic of a device with a blend structure composed of undoped spiro-OMeTAD and

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P3HT/SWNTs b) Schematic architecture of a device with a P3HT/SWNT layer underneath the hole transport

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material (spiro-OMeTAD) matrix. c) A cross-sectional scanning electron microscope (SEM) image of a

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representative device. Individual SWNTs can be seen to protrude from the interface between the alumina and

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spiro-OMeTAD layers. d) Top view of a bare SWNT layer showing the thick mesh-like structure of the SWNT

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layer.

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Figure 2 shows the current-voltage characteristics for representative devices in different

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configurations: without a hole-transport layer, with undoped spiro-OMeTAD and with

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composites of neat spiro-OMeTAD and P3HT/SWNTs.

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The device without a p-type collection layer, i.e. direct contact of the hole-collecting

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electrode to the perovskite exhibits very poor current-voltage characteristics, with especially

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low short-circuit photocurrent. This suggests that direct metallic contact to the perovskite

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absorber in the MSSC structure, where both electrons and holes reside within the perovskite,

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is not advantageous for selective charge extraction. It has been shown that if the perovskite is

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coated onto an electron-accepting mesoporous layer of TiO2, photogenerated holes could be

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directly collected by a gold electrode,13 because rapid electron transfer to the mesoporous

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TiO2 competes more favorably than electron transfer to, and recombination at, the gold

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electrode, however, the efficiency is significantly lower.14 In the MSSC architecture, in

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contrast, electrons are not extracted so quickly at the electron collection side, so electron

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transfer from the perovskite to the metal electrode is likely to occur, constituting a

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recombination pathway. A significant improvement is therefore observed even when undoped

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spiro-OMeTAD is used as the hole-collection layer. Because this material accepts holes but

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blocks electrons, it prevents recombination at the electrode. This reduced recombination is

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particularly evident in the enhanced open-circuit voltage and increased short-circuit

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photocurrent. Despite the low conductivity in the spiro-OMeTAD film, this configuration can

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still deliver a device with up to 16.3 mA/cm2 photocurrent, but only 6.8% efficiency due to a

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poor fill factor (figure 2, table 1). Evidently, charge extraction is limited by the low mobility

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of the photogenerated charges inside the spiro-OMeTAD layer.

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Single-walled carbon nanotubes are known for their outstanding charge-carrier transport

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characteristics both on their own,15–17 and also as additives in polymer matrices, to improve

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the charge transport within that phase.18,19 We find accordingly, that dispersing

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P3HT/SWNTs within the spiro-OMeTAD layer results in a significant increase in device

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efficiency, which we ascribe to improved charge transport throughout the spiro-OMeTAD

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layer. In terms of device performance this translates into an increase in the extracted

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photocurrent, as well as an improved fill factor and open-circuit voltage. This enhancement

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of performance parameters results in an efficiency increase to 10.0% (figure 2, table 1).

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However, compared to the performance parameters of state-of-the art MSSC perovskite solar

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cells the photocurrent and fill factor are still low.3,20,21 We suspect that the nanotubes in this

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configuration cannot effectively form a closely interconnected percolation network, that can

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effectively extend throughout the spiro-OMeTAD layer, resulting in the device being limited

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by series resistance and thus limiting the fill factor. Being randomly dispersed through the

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spiro-OMeTAD layer, the nanotubes may also not have enough direct interfacial contact to

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the perovskite absorber to efficiently transport holes away from the interface.

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Figure 2: Comparison of current-voltage characteristics of two strategies of P3HT/SWNT incorporation into

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spiro-OMeTAD and two control structures. The presence of spiro-OMeTAD as hole transport layer (orange

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diamonds) leads to a significant improvement in efficiency compared to the device without HTL (grey

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triangles). Dispersing P3HT/SWNTs in the spiro-OMeTAD layer further improve the JV-characteristics (green

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circles). However, the greatest improvement is achieved by sequential deposition of P3HT/SWNTs and spiro-

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OMeTAD (red squares), which results in a stratified HTL structure.

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Table 1: performance parameters of devices with different hole transport layers. These include two approaches of incorporating P3HT/SWNTs into the spiro-OMeTAD layer and two control structures. 2

2

HTL architecture

Jsc [mA/cm ]

Voc [V]

FF

PCE [%]

Rs [Ω Ω /cm ]

no HTL

2.4

0.68

0.53

0.8

45.0

spiro-OMeTAD

16.3

0.97

0.43

6.8

16.9

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P3HT/SWNT-spiro-OMeTAD (blend)

19.1

0.97

0.54

10.0

8.8

P3HT/SWNT-spiro-OMeTAD (stratified)

21.4

1.02

0.71

15.4

1.8

1 2 3 4

Based on these considerations, we investigated a second approach in which the nanotubes

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and spiro-OMeTAD are deposited sequentially. The initial deposition of the P3HT/SWNTs

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alone ensures that the nanotubes form a densely interconnected network with a direct

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interface with the perovskite layer allowing efficient direct transfer of photogenerated holes

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from the absorber to the nanotubes. Subsequent coating and infilling with spiro-OMeTAD

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prevents the evaporated top electrode from directly contacting the perovskite, and forms the

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hole-conductor contact to the electrode. The nanotube network thus constitutes a highly-

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conductive percolation network within the amorphous hole conductor matrix.

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In figure 1 c) we show a scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image of a representative

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device cross-section. P3HT/SWNT bundles are apparent protruding from the interface

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between the Al2O3-perovskite and spiro-OMeTAD layer. We assume that spiro-OMeTAD

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readily infiltrates the P3HT/SWNT layer filling the openings and gaps of the mesh-like

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nanotube layer, due to its excellent pore filling properties, and good wettability upon coating

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this surface. There is clearly stratification, with much higher P3HT/SWNT density near the

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perovskite surface, which should allow efficient charge transfer away from the interface. In

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fact, this is evident as a much improved photocurrent in the current-voltage characteristics of

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a device with such a sequentially coated stratified P3HT/SWNT-spiro-OMeTAD composite

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layer, shown in figure 2. The other significantly improved performance parameter is the fill

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factor, which can be attributed to fewer series resistance losses. This device yields a scanned

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power-conversion efficiency of 15.4% (table 1).

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It is clear that the stratified structure with the formation of a dense, interconnected network

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of P3HT/SWNT hybrids allows photogenerated holes from the perovskite to rapidly move

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through the horizontal plane to the most efficient vertical pathway to the top electrode. The

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fact that the devices work so well indicates that direct contact of the P3HT/SWNTs to the

5

perovskite surface does not introduce an undesired electron recombination pathway but

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instead facilitates selective hole transport.

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As previously pointed out, perovskite solar cells often exhibit hysteretic current-voltage

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characteristics.22,23 Changing the scanning conditions can therefore result in a change of the

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solar cell performance calculated from such a JV-curve. Determining the stabilized power

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output by holding a device at constant voltage around its maximum power point is an

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unambiguous performance metric for such devices.22 We find that well-working devices

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usually have stabilized power output of around 0.8 of their scanned efficiency (Supporting

13

Information).

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In order to corroborate the proposed mechanism of charge extraction, we performed

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photoinduced absorption (PIA) spectroscopy. PIA is a quasi-continuous-wave (CW)

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technique, which enables probing the optical signature of photogenerated species. Because

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spiro-OMeTAD and P3HT/SWNTs exhibit different optical signatures when oxidized, it can

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be determined whether the photogenerated holes are residing on either component or both.

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The PIA spectrum of a device with undoped spiro-OMeTAD HTL is shown in figure 3 a).

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The broad feature at ~1300 nm is characteristic of the presence of holes in spiro-OMeTAD

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(i.e. its oxidized state).4,24,25 For the stratified P3HT/SWNT-spiro-OMeTAD structure, we

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observe that the broad feature of oxidized spiro-OMeTAD becomes weaker and appears to be

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overlaid with a second, longer wavelength feature centered around 1450 nm. This suggests a

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smaller or shorter-lived hole population in the spiro-OMeTAD in the presence of

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P3HT/SWNTs. To isolate the specific features of P3HT/SWNTs in the PIA spectra, we

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carried out PIA measurements on devices with neat P3HT/SWNT films in place of spiro-

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OMeTAD. The resulting PIA spectrum is plotted in figure 3 b) together with the absorption

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spectrum of a P3HT/SWNT film on glass. The absorption spectrum has the characteristic

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absorption peaks associated with the E11 transitions of s-type P3HT/SWNTs according to

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their chirality.26 In the PIA spectrum, we observe a series of photobleaching (PB) features,

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which perfectly coincide with bleaching of the ground state absorption of the P3HT/SWNTs.

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The PIA absorption feature further into the infrared is presumably absorption of the oxidized

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P3HT/SWNTs or electrons in the electron-accepting TiO2 layer on the adjacent side of the

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perovskite film. The photobleaching features were not observed in PIA measurements on

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films of P3HT/SWNTs on glass without the active perovskite layer. We can thus exclude that

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the observed PB features are caused by charge transfer between the SWNTs and the

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encapsulating P3HT sheath.

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Figure 3: a) shows the photoinduced-absorption (PIA) spectrum of both neat spiro-OMeTAD and the

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P3HT/SWNT-spiro-OMeTAD stratified HTL. The broad PIA feature at 1300 nm is characteristic of the

4

presence of holes in spiro-OMeTAD. In the presence of the P3HT/SWNT interlayer this feature appears to be

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much weaker and appears to be overlaid with a second, longer wavelength feature centered around 1450 nm. b)

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The PIA spectrum of a device with a neat P3HT-wrapped P3HT/SWNT layer as HTL is plotted together with

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the absorption spectrum of a P3HT/SWNT film on glass. The photobleaching dips correspond well to the

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exciton absorption peaks of the s-type SWNTs from which hole injection from the perovskite into the

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P3HT/SWNT valence band can be inferred. c) the absorption spectrum resulting from subtracting the absorption

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spectrum of undoped SWNTs and highly p-doped (oxidized) SWNTs in solution, overlaid with the

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photoinduced absorption spectrum of a P3HT/SWNT film on top of a perovskite absorber (excited at 515 nm).

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To confirm that the photobleaching features observed in the PIA measurements

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correspond in fact to the transfer of photogenerated holes to the SWNTs, we chemically p-

6

doped

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tetracyanoquinodimethane (F4TCNQ).27 This chemical p-doping results in charge depletion

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of the SWNT valence bands. The change in absorbance between the undoped and the highly

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p-doped (oxidized) absorption spectrum (figure 3 a)) shows a bleaching of the absorption of

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the ground state transitions (E11) which resembles closely the photobleaching features

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detected in the PIA measurements (figure 3 c)). We take this finding as evidence that the

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photobleaching features can be attributed to the injection of holes photogenerated in the

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perovskite absorber. These measurements show that the P3HT/SWNT nanohybrids act as an

14

efficient hole-acceptor in their own right.

functionalized

SWNTs

in

solution

using

2,3,5,6-

tetrafluoro-7,7,8,8-

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To further clarify how direct hole transfer from the perovskite to the nanotubes leads to an

16

increase in efficiency, we performed small perturbation transient photocurrent decay (figure

17

4).28

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Figure 4: results of the decay measurements of two devices with two different HTLs, one with neat spiro-

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OMeTAD, one with SWNT-spiro-OMeTAD. The charge extraction lifetime is shown in a). The device with the

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SWNT interlayer exhibits close to one order of magnitude faster extraction. The recombination lifetime in b)

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appears to be quite similar in both devices. The faster charge extraction leads to a higher charge extraction

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efficiency with increasing light intensity, shown in c).

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Figure 4 a) illustrates the charge extraction time measured at open circuit voltage plotted

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against various light intensities for two devices with a HTL composed of either solely spiro-

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OMeTAD or of the sequentially coated SWNT-spiro-OMeTAD structure. For all light

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intensities, it can be seen that charge extraction occurs almost one order of magnitude faster

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in the presence of the P3HT/SWNT nanohybrids interlayer.

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The fact that the charge extraction lifetimes decrease with light intensity for both

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structures indicates that charge transport through undoped spiro-OMeTAD limits hole

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transport for both structures, because we have previously demonstrated that neat spiro-

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OMeTAD has a strongly charge density dependent mobility.29 In the case of the nanotube

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composite structure, however, only a fraction of the photogenerated holes is transported

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through spiro-OMeTAD whereas others are extracted through the SWNTs, which results in a

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greatly improved extraction rate. The enhancement of the hole extraction throughout the HTL

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appears to be the main cause for the overall improved performance, based on the observation

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that the recombination rate is comparable between the undoped spiro-OMeTAD layer and the

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nanohybrid structure (figure 4b)). At higher light intensities in particular, the improved

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transport properties of the stratified HTL structure results in much higher charge collection

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efficiency values (defined as the ratio of extraction rate to the sum of extraction and

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recombination rate) (figure 4 c)). This is in agreement with a linear dependence of the short-

19

circuit current on light intensity (Supporting Information).

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In summary, we have shown that P3HT-wrapped single-walled carbon nanotubes act as

21

highly effective p-type charge transporter in perovskite solar cells and allow us to fully

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replace Li-TFSI doping of spiro-OMeTAD usually required for comparable efficiencies.

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Sequentially depositing nanotubes and spiro-OMeTAD is shown to be superior to blend

24

structures, most likely because the nanotubes can form a well-connected percolation network

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in this configuration. This double-layer structure has the potential to become a model system 13 ACS Paragon Plus Environment

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for carbon nanotube based charge-collection layers, which can extract charges as well as

2

protect vulnerable interfaces.

3 4 5

METHODS

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SWNT Functionalization. Powdered singled-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) produced

7

by the HiPco process were purchased from Carbon Nanotechnologies Incorporated (CNI;

8

now Unidym) with lengths 100–1000 nm and an intermediate diameter distribution of 0.8–1.2

9

nm. The samples used in this work were purchased as ‘purified’ tubes (