Enhancing Stability and Photostability of CsPbI₃ by Reducing Its Dimensionality

Full inorganic perovskites display their potential to function as stable photovoltaic materials better than the hybrid organic–inorganic perovskites. However, to date, the cesium lead iodide perovskite, which displays a promising absorbance range, has suffered from low stability, which degrades to a nonactive photovoltaic phase rapidly. In this work, we show that the black phase of cesium lead iodide can be stabilized when the perovskite dimensionality is reduced. X-ray diffraction, absorbance, and scanning electron microscopy were used to follow the degradation process of various dimensionalities under room conditions and 1 sun illumination. When comparing the effect on the stability and photostability of cesium lead iodide with linear or aromatic barrier molecules, the aromatic barrier molecule displays better photostability for over 700 h without degradation under continuous 1 sun illumination than does the linear barrier molecule. Theoretical calculations show that the addition of the barrier molecule makes a different charge distribution over the perovskite structure, which stabilizes the CsPbI3 black phase. This work provides the possibility to use the CsPbI3 perovskite as a stable photovoltaic material in solar cells.