Tracking Iodide and Bromide Ion Segregation in Mixed Halide Lead Perovskites during Photoirradiation

Mixed halide lead perovskites (e.g., CH3NH3PbBrxI3–x) undergo phase segregation creating iodide-rich and bromide-rich domains when subjected to visible irradiation. This intriguing aspect of halide ion movement in mixed halide films is now being tracked through excited-state behavior using emission and transient absorption spectroscopy tools. These transient experiments have allowed us to establish the time scale with which such separation occurs under laser irradiation (405 nm, 25 mW/cm2 to 1.7 W/cm2) as well as dark recovery. While the phase separation occurs with a rate constant of 0.1–0.3 s–1, the recovery occurs over a time period of several minutes to an hour. The relative photoluminescence quantum yield observed for Br-rich regions (em. max 530 nm) is nearly 2 orders of magnitude lower than that of I-rich regions (em. max 760 nm) and arises from the fact that I-rich regions serve as sinks for photogenerated charge carriers. Understanding such cascading charge transfer to localized sites could further enable the design of gradient halide structures in mixed halide systems.