Unexpectedly Strong Auger Recombination in Halide Perovskites

The emergence of halide perovskites for photovoltaic applications has triggered great interest in these materials for solid-state light emission. Higher order electron–hole recombination processes can critically affect the efficiency of such devices. In the present work, the Auger recombination coefficients are computed in the prototypical halide perovskite, CH3NH3PbI3 (MAPbI3), using first-principles calculations. It is demonstrated that Auger recombination is responsible for the exceptionally high third-order recombination coefficient observed in experiment. The large Auger coefficient is attributed to a coincidental resonance between the bandgap and interband transitions to a complex of higher-lying conduction bands. Additionally, it is found that the distortions of PbI6 octahedra contribute significantly to the high Auger coefficient, offering potential avenues for materials design.