Pb clustering and PbI₂ nanofragmentation during methylammonium lead iodide perovskite degradation.

ABSTRACT: Studying defect formation and evolution in MethylAmmonium lead Iodide (MAPbI₃) perovskite layers has a bottleneck in the softness of the matter and in its consequent sensitivity to external solicitations. Here we report that, in a polycrystalline MAPbI₃ layer, Pb-related defects aggregate into nanoclusters preferentially at the triple grain boundaries as unveiled by Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM) analyses at low total electron dose. Pb-clusters are killer against MAPbI₃ integrity since they progressively feed up the hosting matrix. This progression is limited by the concomitant but slower transformation of the MAPbI₃ core to fragmented and interconnected nano-grains of 6H-PbI₂ that are structurally linked to the mother grain as

SUBMITTER: Alberti A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6522562 | biostudies-literature | 2019 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature