Ideal Bandgap in a 2D Ruddlesden-Popper Perovskite Chalcogenide for Single-junction Solar Cells

Abstract

Transition metal perovskite chalcogenides (TMPCs) are explored as stable, environmentally friendly semiconductors for solar energy conversion. They can be viewed as the inorganic alternatives to hybrid halide perovskites, and chalcogenide counterparts of perovskite oxides with desirable optoelectronic properties in the visible and infrared part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Past theoretical studies have predicted large absorption coefficient, desirable defect characteristics, and bulk photovoltaic effect in TMPCs. Despite recent progresses in polycrystalline synthesis and measurements of their optical properties, it is necessary to grow these materials in high crystalline quality to develop a fundamental understanding of their optical properties and evaluate their suitability for photovoltaic application. Here, we report the growth of single crystals of a two-dimensional (2D) perovskite chalcogenide, Ba3Zr2S7, with a natural superlattice-like structure of alternating double-layer perovskite blocks and single-layer rock salt structure. The material demonstrated a bright photoluminescence peak at 1.28 eV with a large external luminescence efficiency of up to 0.15%. We performed time-resolved photoluminescence spectroscopy on these crystals and obtained an effective recombination time of ~65 ns. These results clearly show that 2D Ruddlesden-Popper phases of perovskite chalcogenides are promising materials to achieve single-junction solar cells.

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Cited by in corpus (7)

• Thermal Stability Study of Transition Metal Perovskite Sulfides
• Crystal growth and structural analysis of perovskite chalcogenide BaZrS${}_3$ and Ruddlesden-Popper phase Ba${}_3$Zr${}_2$S${}_7$
• Structure-Composition-Property Relationships in Antiperovskite Nitrides: Guiding a Rational Alloy Design
• Band gap evolution in Ruddlesden-Popper phases
• Discovery of highly-polarizable semiconductors BaZrS3 and Ba3Zr2S7
• Quasi-epitaxial growth of BaTiS${}_3$ films
• Epitaxial Thin Films of a Chalcogenide Perovskite