Structurally Compact Penta(N,N-diphenylamino)corannulene as Dopant-free Hole Transport Materials for Stable and Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells

Xue-Peng Zhang; Luyao Wang; Wen-Xin Zhang; Zuo-Chang Chen; Chunming Yang; Si-Yi Xu; Peng Du; Bin-Wen Chen; Qunyang He; Han-Rui Tian; Xuejie Zhu; Meng Li; Shan-Shan Wang; Lin-Long Deng; Si-Hao Chen; Qianyan Zhang; Su-Yuan Xie; Lan-Sun Zheng

doi:10.1002/anie.202413582

Structurally Compact Penta(N,N-diphenylamino)corannulene as Dopant-free Hole Transport Materials for Stable and Efficient Perovskite Solar Cells

Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2024 Oct 18:e202413582. doi: 10.1002/anie.202413582. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Xue-Peng Zhang¹, Luyao Wang¹, Wen-Xin Zhang¹, Zuo-Chang Chen¹, Chunming Yang², Si-Yi Xu¹, Peng Du¹, Bin-Wen Chen¹, Qunyang He^{1

3}, Han-Rui Tian¹, Xuejie Zhu⁴, Meng Li⁵, Shan-Shan Wang⁶, Lin-Long Deng¹, Si-Hao Chen¹, Qianyan Zhang¹, Su-Yuan Xie¹, Lan-Sun Zheng¹

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory for Physical Chemistry of Solid Surfaces, iChEM (Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemistry for Energy Materials), Department of Chemistry, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian, 361005, China.
² Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Shanghai Advanced Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 201204, China.
³ Reactive Hazards Evaluation Laboratory, Gulei Innovation Institute, Xiamen University, Zhangzhou, Fujian, 363105, China.
⁴ Dalian National Laboratory for Clean Energy, Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Dalian, Liaoning, 116023, China.
⁵ Key Lab for Special Functional Materials of Ministry of Education, National & Local Joint Engineering Research Center for High-efficiency Display and Lighting Technology, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Collaborative Innovation Center of Nano Functional Materials and Applications, Henan University, Kaifeng, Henan, 475004, China.
⁶ Science & Technology Innovation Laboratory for Energy Materials of China (Tan Kah Kee Innovation Laboratory), Xiamen, Fujian, 361005, China.

PMID: 39422656
DOI: 10.1002/anie.202413582

Abstract

Hole transport materials (HTMs) are essential for improving the stability and efficiency of perovskite solar cells (PSCs). In this study, we have designed and synthesized a novel organic small molecule HTM, cor-(DPA)₅, characterized by a bowl-shaped core with symmetric five diphenylamine groups. Compared to already-known HTMs, the bowl-shaped and relatively compact structure of cor-(DPA)₅ facilitates intermolecular π-π interactions, promotes film formations, and enhances charge transport. Consequently, the cor-[DPA(2)]₅ HTM exhibits high charge mobility, exceptional hydrophobicity, and a significantly elevated glass transition temperature. Superior to previously reported HTMs such as spiro-OMeTAD and cor-OMePTPA, our newly synthesized cor-(DPA)₅ HTM is free from any ionic dopants. As a result, the dopant-free cor-[DPA(2)]₅-based PSC demonstrates an impressive efficiency of 24.01 %, and exhibits outstanding operational stability. It retains 96 % after continuous exposure to 1 sun irradiation for 800 hours under MPP (maximum power point) tracking in ambient air. These findings present a structurally compact novel HTM and exemplify a new approach to the molecular design of HTM for the development of stable and effective PSCs.

Keywords: corannulene; diphenylamine; dopant-free; hole transporting materials; perovskite solar cells.

Abstract

Grants and funding