Electronic Structure of TiO2/CH3NH3PbI3 Perovskite Solar Cell Interfaces

J Phys Chem Lett. 2014 Feb 20;5(4):648-53. doi: 10.1021/jz402749f. Epub 2014 Jan 30.

Abstract

The electronic structure and chemical composition of efficient CH3NH3PbI3 perovskite solar cell materials deposited onto mesoporous TiO2 were studied using photoelectron spectroscopy with hard X-rays. With this technique, it is possible to directly measure the occupied energy levels of the perovskite as well as the TiO2 buried beneath and thereby determine the energy level matching of the interface. The measurements of the valence levels were in good agreement with simulated density of states, and the investigation gives information on the character of the valence levels. We also show that two different deposition techniques give results indicating similar electronic structures.

Keywords: DFT; HAXPES; XPS; mesoscopic solar cell; photoelectron spectroscopy.