B(I)‐Site Alkali Metal Engineering of Lead‐Free Perovskite Nanocrystals for Efficient X‐Ray Detection and Imaging

Abstract Lead‐free metal halide double perovskites have emerged as promising scintillators owing to their superior optoelectronic properties, low‐cost and solution processability. However, it is still challenging to develop high‐performance flexible X‐ray scintillators based on the B(I)‐site alkali metal modulation in lead‐free double perovskite nanocrystals (NCs). Herein, a series of novel Cs 2 B(I)GdCl 6 (B: Li, Na, K) of double perovskite A 2 B(I)M(III)X 6 NCs structures are successfully synthesized, the optical and scintillator properties of which are significantly sensitive to the B(I)‐site alkali metals with the doping of Sb 3+ . They showed efficient self‐trapped exciton (STE) emission with high photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY) and exhibited the highest X‐ray detection limit (86 nGy air s −1 ) and excellent spatial resolutions (>15 lp mm −1 ). The femtosecond transient absorption measurement and theoretical analysis further revealed that the B(I)‐site alkali metal fundamentally balanced the exciton–phonon coupling with appropriate STEs formation energy barrier and the electron localization and thus improved the optical and scintillator properties. This B(I)‐site alkali metal engineering offers a strategy to develop bright luminescent double perovskite NCs for X‐ray detection and imaging devices.