Hysteresis Analysis Based on the Ferroelectric Effect in Hybrid Perovskite Solar Cells

• Published in: The journal of physical chemistry letters Vol. 5; no. 21; pp. 3937 - 3945
• Main Authors: Wei, Jing, Zhao, Yicheng, Li, Heng, Li, Guobao, Pan, Jinlong, Xu, Dongsheng, Zhao, Qing, Yu, Dapeng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 06.11.2014
• Subjects: Energy Conversion and Storage; Energy and Charge Transport; ferroelectric; perovskite; solar cells; photovoltaic; hysteresis
• ISSN: 1948-7185; 1948-7185
• DOI: 10.1021/jz502111u

The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of CH3NH3PbX3 (X = I, Br, Cl) perovskite solar cells has been developed rapidly from 6.5 to 18% within 3 years. However, the anomalous hysteresis found in I–V measurements can cause an inaccurate estimation of the efficiency. We attribute the phenomena to the ferroelectric effect and build a model based on the ferroelectric diode to explain it. The ferroelectric effect of CH3NH3PbI3–x Cl x is strongly suggested by characterization methods and the E–P (electrical field–polarization) loop. The hysteresis in I–V curves is found to greatly depend on the scan range as well as the velocity, which is well explained by the ferroelectric diode model. We also find that the current signals show exponential decay in ∼10 s under prolonged stepwise measurements, and the anomalous hysteresis disappears using these stabilized current values. The experimental results accord well with the model based on ferroelectric properties and prove that prolonged stepwise measurement is an effective way to evaluate the real efficiency of perovskite solar cells. Most importantly, this work provides a meaningful perspective that the ferroelectric effect (if it really exists) should be paid special attention in the optimization of perovskite solar cells.