Multifunctional sulfonium-based treatment for perovskite solar cells with less than 1% efficiency loss over 4,500-h operational stability tests

The stabilization of grain boundaries and surfaces of the perovskite layer is critical to extend the durability of perovskite solar cells. Here we introduced a sulfonium-based molecule, dimethylphenethylsulfonium iodide (DMPESI), for the post-deposition treatment of formamidinium lead iodide perovskite films. The treated films show improved stability upon light soaking and remains in the black α phase after two years ageing under ambient condition without encapsulation. The DMPESI-treated perovskite solar cells show less than 1% performance loss after more than 4,500 h at maximum power point tracking, yielding a theoretical T₈₀ of over nine years under continuous 1-sun illumination. The solar cells also display less than 5% power conversion efficiency drops under various ageing conditions, including 100 thermal cycles between 25 °C and 85 °C and an 1,050-h damp heat test.