Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 12, 2026

Atom Probe Tomography Studies on the Cu(In,Ga)Se2 Grain Boundaries
Published on: April 22, 2013
Grain-Boundary "Patches" by In Situ Conversion to Enhance Perovskite Solar Cells Stability
Lang Liu1, Sheng Huang1, Yue Lu2
1Beijing Key Laboratory of Nanophotonics and Ultrafine Optoelectronic Systems, School of Materials Science & Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, 100081, China.
Abstract:
The power conversion efficiency of organic-inorganic hybrid perovskite solar cells has increased rapidly, but the device stability remains a big challenge. Previous studies show the grain boundary (GB) can facilitate ion migration and initiate device degradation. Herein, methimazole (MMI) is employed for the first time to construct a surface "patch" by in situ converting residual PbI2 at GBs. The resultant MMI-PbI2 complex can effectively suppress ion migration and inhibit diffusion of the metal electrodes. The origin of the surface "patch" effect and their working mechanisms are investigated experimentally and theoretically at the microscopic level. It hence demonstrates a simple and effective method to prolong the device stability in the context of GB engineering, which could be extensively applied to perovskite-based optoelectronics.

