Analysis of Current-Voltage Hysteresis and Ageing Characteristics for CH3NH3PbI3-xClxBased Perovskite Thin Film Solar Cells

Organic-inorganic lead halide perovskites are very promising materials for the next generation of solar cells with intrinsic advantages such as a low-cost material due to the availability of source materials and low-temperature solution processing as well as a high power conversion efficiency of the sunlight. However, perovskite solar cells are still unstable and show deleterious current-voltage hysteresis effects. Inthis thesis, analyses of CH3NH3PbI3-xClx based perovskite thin films and solar cells are presented. The electrical transport characteristics and the ageing processes are investigated using different approaches.The synthesis of the halide perovskite materials is optimized in a first step by controlling the deposition conditions such as annealing temperature (80?C) and spinning rate (6000 rpm) in the one step-spin-casted process. CH3NH3PbI3-xClx based perovskite solar cells are then fabricated in the inverted planar structure and characterized optically and electrically in a second step.Direct experimental evidence of the motion of the halide ions under an applied voltage has been observed using glow discharge optical emission spectroscopy (GDOES). Ionic diffusion length of 140 nm and ratio of mobile iodide ions of 65 % have been deduced. It is shown that the current-voltage hysteresis in the dark is strongly affected by the halide migration which causes a substantial screening of the applied electric field. Thus we have found a shift of voltage at zero current (< 0.25 V) and a leakage current (< 0.1 mA/cm2) in the dark versus measurement condition. Through the current-voltage curves as a function of temperature we have identified the freezing temperature of the mobile iodides at 260K. Using the Nernst-Einstein equation we have deduced a value of 0.253 eV for the activation energy of the mobile ions.Finally, the ageing process of the solar cell has been investigated with optical and electrical measurements. We deduced that the ageing process appear at first at the perovskite grain surface and boundaries. The electrical characteristics are degraded through a deterioration of the silver top-electrode due to the diffusion of iodides toward the silver as shown by GDOES analysis.