Ligand‐Solvent Coordination Enables Comprehensive Trap Passivation for Efficient Near‐Infrared Quantum Dot Light‐Emitting Diodes

Abstract Near‐infrared light‐emitting diodes (NIR LEDs) based on perovskite quantum dots (QDs) have produced external quantum efficiency (EQE) of ~15 %. However, these high‐performance NIR‐QLEDs suffer from immediate carrier quenching because of the accumulation of migratable ions at the surface of the QDs. These uncoordinated ions and carriers—if not bound to the nanocrystal surface—serve as centers for exciton quenching and device degradation. In this work, we overcome this issue and fabricate high‐performance NIR QLEDs by devising a ligand anchoring strategy, which entails dissolving the strong‐binding ligand (Guanidine Hydroiodide, GAI) in the mediate‐polar solvent. By employing the dye‐sensitized device structure (phosphorescent indicator), we demonstrate the elimination of the interface defects. The treated QDs films exhibit an exciton binding energy of 117 meV: this represents a 1.5‐fold increase compared to that of the control (74 meV). We report, as a result, the NIR QLEDs with an EQE of 21 % which is a record among NIR perovskite QLEDs. These QLEDs also exhibit a 7‐fold higher operational stability than that of the best previously reported NIR QLEDs. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the QDs are compatible with large‐area QLEDs: we showcase 900 mm 2 QLEDs with EQE approaching 20 %.