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Dual function of a high-contrast hydrophobic–hydrophilic coating for enhanced stability of perovskite solar cells in extremely humid environments

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Abstract

In spite of a continuous increase in their power conversion efficiency (PCE) and an economically viable fabrication process, organic–inorganic perovskite solar cells (PSCs) pose a significant problem when used in practical applications: They show fast degradation of the PCE when exposed to very humid environments. In this study, the stability of PSCs under very humid conditions is greatly enhanced by coating the surface of the PSC devices with a multi-layer film consisting of ultrahydrophobic and relatively hydrophilic layers. A hydrophobic composite of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), polyurethane (PU), and SiO2 nanoparticles successfully retards the water molecules from very humid surroundings. Also, the hydrophilic layer with moderately PMMA captures the residual moisture within the perovskite layer; subsequently, the perovskite layer recovers. This dual function of the coating film keeps the PCE of PSCs at 17.3% for 180 min when exposed to over 95% humidity.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported from the Global Frontier R&D Program on Center for Multiscale Energy System, Republic of Korea (No. 2012M3A6A7054855) and National Science Foundation (Nos. CMMI-1333182 and EPMD-1408025).

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Correspondence to Hyun Suk Jung or Jung-Kun Lee.

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Dual function of a high-contrast hydrophobic–hydrophilic coating for enhanced stability of perovskite solar cells in extremely humid environments.

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Yoo, J.S., Han, G.S., Lee, S. et al. Dual function of a high-contrast hydrophobic–hydrophilic coating for enhanced stability of perovskite solar cells in extremely humid environments. Nano Res. 10, 3885–3895 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-017-1603-6

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