(CH3NH3)2PdCl4: A Compound with Two‐Dimensional Organic–Inorganic Layered Perovskite Structure

The synthesis of previously unknown perovskite (CH₃NH₃)₂PdCl₄ is reported. Despite using an organic cation with the smallest possible alkyl group, a 2D organic–inorganic layered Pd‐based perovskites was still formed. This demonstrates that Pd‐based 2D perovskites can be obtained even if the size of the organic cation is below the size limit predicted by the Goldschmidt tolerance‐factor formula. The (CH₃NH₃)₂PdCl₄ phase has a bulk resistivity of 1.4 Ω cm, a direct optical gap of 2.22 eV, and an absorption coefficient on the order of 10⁴ cm^?1. XRD measurements suggest that the compound is moderately stable in air, an important advantage over several existing organic–inorganic perovskites that are prone to phase degradation problems when exposed to the atmosphere. Given the recent interest in organic–inorganic perovskites, the synthesis of this new Pd‐based organic–inorganic perovskite may be helpful in the preparation and understanding of other organic–inorganic perovskites.     

Control of Charge Transport in the Perovskite CH3NH3PbI3 Thin Film

Carrier density and transport properties in the CH₃NH₃PbI₃ thin film have been investigated. It is found that the carrier density, the depletion field, and the charge collection and transport properties in the CH₃NH₃PbI₃ absorber film can be controlled effectively by different concentrations of reactants. That is, the carrier properties and the self‐doping characteristics in CH₃NH₃PbI₃ films are strongly influenced by the reaction thermodynamic and kinetic processes. Furthermore, by employing mixed solvents with ethanol and isopropanol to deposit the CH₃NH₃PbI₃ film, the charge collection and transport efficiencies are improved significantly, thereby yielding an overall enhanced cell performance.     

Methylamine‐Gas‐Induced Defect‐Healing Behavior of CH3NH3PbI3 Thin Films for Perovskite Solar Cells

We report herein the discovery of methylamine (CH₃NH₂) induced defect‐healing (MIDH) of CH₃NH₃PbI₃ perovskite thin films based on their ultrafast (seconds), reversible chemical reaction with CH₃NH₂ gas at room temperature. The key to this healing behavior is the formation and spreading of an intermediate CH₃NH₃PbI₃?xCH₃NH₂ liquid phase during this unusual perovskite–gas interaction. We demonstrate the versatility and scalability of the MIDH process, and show dramatic enhancement in the performance of perovskite solar cells (PSCs) with MIDH. This study represents a new direction in the formation of defect‐free films of hybrid perovskites.     

[C6H14N]PbBr3: An ABX3‐Type Semiconducting Perovskite Hybrid with Above‐Room‐Temperature Phase Transition

Organic–inorganic hybrid perovskites, with the formula ABX₃ (A=organic cation, B=metal cation, and X=halide; for example, CH₃NH₃PbI₃), have diverse and intriguing physical properties, such as semiconduction, phase transitions, and optical properties. Herein, a new ABX₃‐type semiconducting perovskite‐like hybrid, (hexamethyleneimine)PbBr₃ ( 1 ), consisting of one‐dimensional inorganic frameworks and cyclic organic cations, is reported. Notably, the inorganic moiety of 1 adopts a perovskite‐like architecture and forms infinite columns composed of face‐sharing PbBr₆ octahedra. Strikingly, the organic cation exhibits a highly flexible molecular configuration, which triggers an above‐room‐temperature phase transition, at T_c=338.8 K; this is confirmed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), specific heat capacity (C_p), and dielectric measurements. Further structural analysis reveals that the phase transition originates from the molecular configurational distortion of the organic cations coupled with small‐angle reorientation of the PbBr₆ octahedra inside the inorganic components. Moreover, temperature‐dependent conductivity and UV/Vis absorption measurements reveal that 1 also displays semiconducting behavior below T_c. It is believed that this work will pave a potential way to design multifeatured perovskite hybrids by utilizing cyclic organic amines.     

Tuning the Stability of CaCO3 Crystals with Magnesium Ions for the Formation of Aragonite Thin Films on Organic Polymer Templates

Thin‐film growth of aragonite CaCO₃ on annealed poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) matrices is induced by adding Mg²⁺ into a supersaturated solution of CaCO₃. Both the growth rate and surface morphology of the aragonite thin films depend upon the concentration of Mg²⁺ in the mineralization solution. In the absence of PVA matrices, no thin films are formed, despite the presence of Mg²⁺. Molecular dynamics simulation of the CaCO₃ precursor suggests that the transition of amorphous calcium carbonate to crystals is suppressed in the presence of Mg²⁺. The role for ionic additives in the crystallization of CaCO₃ on organic templates obtained in this study may provide useful information for the development of functional hybrid materials.     

Influence of Orientational Disorder on the Optical Absorption Properties of the Hybrid Metal-Halide Perovskite CH3NH3PbI3

An experimental and theoretical investigation is reported to analyze the relation between the structural and absorption properties of CH₃NH₃PbI₃ in the tetragonal phase. More than 3000 geometry optimizations were performed to reveal the structural disorder and identify structures with the lowest energies. The electronic structure calculations provide an averaged band gap of 1.674 eV, which is in excellent agreement with the experimental value of about 1.6 eV. The simulations of the absorption spectrum for three representative structures with lowest energy reproduced the absorption shoulders observed in the experimental spectra. These shoulders are assigned to excitations having similar orbital characters and involving transitions between hybridized 6s(Pb)/5p(I) orbitals and 6p(Pb) orbitals. The geometries of the three structures were analyzed and the effects of the inorganic frame and the CH₃NH₃⁺ cations on the absorption properties were estimated. It was found that both changes in the inorganic frame and the CH₃NH₃⁺ cations orientations impact the absorption spectra, by modifying the transitions energies and intensities. This highlights the role of CH₃NH₃⁺ cation in influencing the absorption properties of CH₃NH₃PbI₃ and demonstrates that CH₃NH₃⁺ cation is one of the key elements explaining the broad and nearly constant absorption spectrum in the visible range.     

Similar Structural Dynamics for the Degradation of CH3NH3PbI3 in Air and in Vacuum

We investigate the degradation path of MAPbI₃ (MA=methylammonium) films over flat TiO₂ substrates at room temperature by means of X‐ray diffraction, spectroscopic ellipsometry, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and high‐resolution transmission electron microscopy. The degradation dynamics is found to be similar in air and under vacuum conditions, which leads to the conclusion that the occurrence of intrinsic thermodynamic mechanisms is not necessarily linked to humidity. The process has an early stage, which drives the starting tetragonal lattice in the direction of a cubic atomic arrangement. This early stage is followed by a phase change towards PbI₂. We describe how this degradation product is structurally coupled with the original MAPbI₃ lattice through the orientation of its constituent PbI₆ octahedra. Our results suggest a slight octahedral rearrangement after volatilization of HI+CH₃NH₂ or MAI, with a relatively low energy cost. Our experiments also clarify why reducing the interfaces and internal defects in the perovskite lattice enhances the stability of the material.     

Understanding the Impact of Bismuth Heterovalent Doping on the Structural and Photophysical Properties of CH3NH3PbBr3 Halide Perovskite Crystals with Near-IR Photoluminescence

A comprehensive study unveiling the impact of heterovalent doping with Bi³⁺ on the structural, semiconductive, and photoluminescent properties of a single crystal of lead halide perovskites (CH₃NH₃PbBr₃) is presented. As indicated by single-crystal XRD, a perfect cubic structure in Bi³⁺-doped CH₃NH₃PbBr₃ crystals is maintained in association with a slight lattice contraction. Time-resolved and power-dependent photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy illustrates a progressively quenched PL of visible emission, alongside the appearance of a new PL signal in the near-infrared (NIR) regime, which is likely to be due to energy transfer to the Bi sites. These optical characteristics indicate the role of Bi³⁺ dopants as nonradiative recombination centers, which explains the observed transition from bimolecular recombination in pristine CH₃NH₃PbBr₃ to a dominant trap-assisted monomolecular recombination with Bi³⁺ doping. Electrically, it is found that the mobility in pristine perovskite crystals can be boosted with a low Bi³⁺ concentration, which may be related to a trap-filling mechanism. Aided by temperature (T)-dependent measurements, two temperature regimes are observed in association with different activation energies (E_a) for electrical conductivity. The reduction of E_a at lower T may be ascribed to suppression of ionic conduction induced by doping. The modified electrical properties and NIR emission with the control of Bi³⁺ concentration shed light on the opportunity to apply heterovalent doping of perovskite single crystals for NIR optoelectronic applications.     

Building Organic/Inorganic Hybrid Interphases for Fast Interfacial Transport in Rechargeable Metal Batteries

We report a facile in situ synthesis that utilizes readily accessible SiCl₄ cross‐linking chemistry to create durable hybrid solid–electrolyte interphases (SEIs) on metal anodes. Such hybrid SEIs composed of Si‐interlinked OOCOR molecules that host LiCl salt exhibit fast charge‐transfer kinetics and as much as five‐times higher exchange current densities, in comparison to their spontaneously formed analogues. Electrochemical analysis and direct optical visualization of Li and Na deposition in symmetric Li/Li and Na/Na cells show that the hybrid SEI provides excellent morphological control at high current densities (3–5 mA cm^?2) for Li and even for notoriously unstable Na metal anodes. The fast interfacial transport attributes of the SEI are also found to be beneficial for Li‐S cells and stable electrochemical cycling was achieved in galvanostatic studies at rates as high as 2 C. Our work therefore provides a promising approach towards rational design of multifunctional, elastic SEIs that overcome the most serious limitations of spontaneously formed interphases on high‐capacity metal anodes.     

Allyloxyporphyrin‐Functionalized Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes: Synthesis by Radical Polymerization and Enhanced Optical‐Limiting Properties

Allyloxyporphyrin‐functionalized multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT‐TPP) were synthesized by radical polymerization and characterized by FTIR, UV/Vis absorption, and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy; elemental analysis; TEM; and thermogravimetric analysis. Z‐scan studies revealed that this nanohybrid exhibits enhanced nonlinear optical (NLO) properties compared to a control sample consisting of a covalently unattached physical blend of MWCNTs and porphyrin, as well as to the separate MWCNTs and porphyrin. At the wavelengths used, the mechanism of enhanced optical limiting likely involves reverse saturable absorption, nonlinear scattering, and photoinduced electron/energy transfer between the MWCNTs and the porphyrin. The role of electron/energy transfer in the NLO performance of MWCNT‐TPP was investigated by Raman and fluorescence spectroscopy.     

Efficient Hole Transporting Materials with Two or Four N,N‐Di(4‐methoxyphenyl)aminophenyl Arms on an Ethene Unit for Perovskite Solar Cells

Novel steric bulky hole transporting materials (HTMs) with two or four N,N‐di(4‐methoxyphenyl)aminophenyl units have been synthesized. When the EtheneTTPA was used as a hole transporting material in perovskite solar cell, the power conversion efficiency afforded 12.77 % under AM 1.5 G illumination, which is comparable to the widely used spiro‐OMeTAD based solar cell (13.28 %).     

Enhancement of the Photovoltaic Performance of CH3NH3PbI3 Perovskite Solar Cells through a Dichlorobenzene‐Functionalized Hole‐Transporting Material

A dichlorobenzene‐functionalized hole‐transporting material (HTM) is developed for a CH₃NH₃PbI₃‐based perovskite solar cell. Notwithstanding the similarity of the frontier molecular orbital energy levels, optical properties, and hole mobility between the functionalized HTM [a polymer composed of 2′‐butyloctyl‐4,6‐dibromo‐3‐fluorothieno[3,4‐b]thiophene‐2‐carboxylate (TT‐BO), 3′,4′‐dichlorobenzyl‐4,6‐dibromo‐3‐fluorothieno[3,4‐b]thiophene‐2‐carboxylate (TT‐DCB), and 2,6‐bis(trimethyltin)‐4,8‐bis(2‐ethylhexyloxy)benzo[1,2‐b:4,5‐b′]dithiophene (BDT‐EH), denoted PTB‐DCB21] and the nonfunctionalized polymer [a polymer composed of thieno[3,4‐b]thiophene (TT) and benzo[1,2‐b:4,5‐b′]dithiophene (BDT), denoted PTB‐BO], a higher power conversion efficiency for PTB‐DCB21 (8.7 %) than that for PTB‐BO (7.4 %) is achieved because of a higher photocurrent and voltage. The high efficiency is even obtained without including additives, such as lithium bis(trifluoromethanesulfonyl)imide and/or 4‐tert‐butylpyridine, that are commonly used to improve the conductivity of the HTM. Transient photocurrent–voltage studies show that the PTB‐DCB21‐based device exhibits faster electron transport and slower charge recombination; this might be related to better interfacial contact through intermolecular chemical interactions between the perovskite and the 3,4‐dichlorobenzyl group in PTB‐DCB21.     

Tris‐Functionalized Hybrid Anderson Polyoxometalates: Synthesis,Characterization, Hydrolytic Stability and Inversion of Protein Surface Charge

Single‐ and double‐sided functionalized hybrid organic–inorganic Anderson polyoxomolybdates with Ga^III and Fe^III positioned as central heteroatoms have been synthesized in a mild, two‐step synthesis in an aqueous medium. Compounds 1 – 4 were isolated as hydrated salts, [TBA]₃[GaMo₆O₁₈(OH)₃{(OCH₂)₃CCH₂OH}]×12 H₂O ( 1 ) (TBA=tetrabutylammonium), Na₃[FeMo₆O₁₈{(OCH₂)₃CCH₂OH}₂]×11 H₂O ( 2 ), [TMA]₂[GaMo₆O₁₈(OH)₃{(OCH₂)₃CNH₃}]×7 H₂O ( 3 ) (TMA=tetramethylammonium), and Na[TMA]₂[FeMo₆O₁₈(OH)₃{(OCH₂)₃CNH₃}](OH)×6 H₂O ( 4 ). All the compounds were characterized based on single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction (SXRD), FTIR, UV/Vis, thermogravimetric, ESI‐MS, NMR, and elemental analyses. Compound 1 was also crystallized with two smaller organic cations, giving [TMA]₃[GaMo₆O₁₈(OH)₃{(OCH₂)₃CCH₂OH}]×n H₂O ( 5 ) and [GDM]₃[GaMo₆O₁₈(OH)₃{(OCH₂)₃CCH₂OH}]×n H₂O ( 6 ) (GDM=guanidinium) and were characterized based on UV/Vis, NMR, FTIR, and elemental analyses. The use of these compounds as additives in macromolecular crystallography was investigated by examining their hydrolytic stability by using ESI‐MS in a pH range of 4 to 9. Sodium dodecyl sulfate‐polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS‐PAGE) analysis showed that BSA remains intact in a solution containing up to 100 equivalents of 1 or 4 over more than four days at 20 °C. Zeta potential measurements demonstrate that 1 – 4 induce charge inversions on the positively charged surface of BSA (1 mg mL^?1) with concentrations starting as low as 1.29 mM for compounds 1 and 2 , which have the highest negative surface charge.     

Porous and Shape‐Anisotropic Single Crystals of the Semiconductor Perovskite CH3NH3PbI3 from a Single‐Source Precursor

Significant progress in solar‐cell research is currently made by the development of metal–organic perovskites (MOPs) owing to their superior properties, such as high absorption coefficients and effective transport of photogenerated charges. As for other semiconductors, it is expected that the properties of MOPs may be significantly improved by a defined nanostructure. However, their chemical sensitivity (e.g., towards hydrolysis) prohibits the application of methods already known for the synthesis of other nanomaterials. A new and general method for the synthesis of various (CH₃NH₃)PbI₃ nanostructures from a novel single‐source precursor is presented. Nanoporous MOP single crystals are obtained by a crystal‐to‐crystal transformation that is accompanied by spinodal demixing of the triethylene glycol containing precursor structure. Selective binding of a capping agent can be used to tune the particle shape of the MOP nanocrystals.     

Incorporating Rare Earth Metal Complexes and Conjugated Organic Cations into Polymeric Iodoargentate: Structures and Properties of Two Hybrid Iodoargentates

Two new polymeric iodoargentate hybrids induced by rare earth metal complexes and conjugated organic cations, {[Er(DMF)₈][Ag₆I₉]}_n ( 1 ) and [(MMP)(AgI₂)]_n ( 2 ) (MMP = 1‐methyl‐4‐methylpyridinium) were obtained by the routine synthetic reaction and structurally determined. In compound 1 , a (Ag₆I₉)_n^3n– chain is defined by edge‐sharing Ag₆I₁₂ units, and in 2 , the (Ag₂I₄)_n^2– chains are constructed by edge‐sharing AgI₄ tetrahedra. C–H ··· I hydrogen bonds between cations and iodoargentate polyanions contribute to their structural extension from 1D to a 2D layer (for 1 ) and a 3D network (for 2 ). The UV/Vis spectra indicate that compared with 2 , compound 1 exhibits a narrower adsorption scope with an onset at about 360 nm, and it has a much wider bandgap of about 3.50 eV.     

Metal@COFs: Covalent Organic Frameworks as Templates for Pd Nanoparticles and Hydrogen Storage Properties of Pd@COF‐102 Hybrid Material

Three‐dimensional covalent organic frameworks (COFs) have been demonstrated as a new class of templates for nanoparticles. Photodecomposition of the [Pd(η³‐C₃H₅)(η⁵‐C₅H₅)]@COF‐102 inclusion compound (synthesized by a gas‐phase infiltration method) led to the formation of the Pd@COF‐102 hybrid material. Advanced electron microscopy techniques (including high‐angle annular dark‐field scanning transmission electron microscopy and electron tomography) along with other conventional characterization techniques unambiguously showed that highly monodisperse Pd nanoparticles ((2.4±0.5) nm) were evenly distributed inside the COF‐102 framework. The Pd@COF‐102 hybrid material is a rare example of a metal‐nanoparticle‐loaded porous crystalline material with a very narrow size distribution without any larger agglomerates even at high loadings (30 wt %). Two samples with moderate Pd content (3.5 and 9.5 wt %) were used to study the hydrogen storage properties of the metal‐decorated COF surface. The uptakes at room temperature from these samples were higher than those of similar systems such as Pd@metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). The studies show that the H₂ capacities were enhanced by a factor of 2–3 through Pd impregnation on COF‐102 at room temperature and 20 bar. This remarkable enhancement is not just due to Pd hydride formation and can be mainly ascribed to hydrogenation of residual organic compounds, such as bicyclopentadiene. The significantly higher reversible hydrogen storage capacity that comes from decomposed products of the employed organometallic Pd precursor suggests that this discovery may be relevant to the discussion of the spillover phenomenon in metal/MOFs and related systems.