Light-enhanced oxygen degradation of MAPbBr3 single crystal

Abstract

Organometal halide perovskites are promising materials for optoelectronic applications, whose commercial realization depends critically on their stability under multiple environmental factors. In this study, a methylammonium lead bromide (MAPbBr₃) single crystal was cleaved and exposed to simultaneous oxygen and light illumination under ultrahigh vacuum (UHV). The exposure process was monitored using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) with precise control of the exposure time and oxygen pressure. It was found that the combination of oxygen and light accelerated the degradation of MAPbBr₃, which could not be viewed as a simple addition of that by oxygen-only and light-only exposures. The XPS spectra showed significant loss of carbon, bromine, and nitrogen at an oxygen exposure of 10¹⁰ Langmuir with light illumination, approximately 17 times of the additive effects of oxygen-only and light-only exposures. It was also found that the photoluminescence (PL) emission was much weakened by oxygen and light co-exposure, while previous reports had shown that PL was substantially enhanced by oxygen-only exposure. Measurements using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and focused ion beam (FIB) demonstrated that the crystal surface was much roughened by the co-exposure. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations revealed the formation of superoxide and oxygen induced gap state, suggesting the creation of oxygen radicals by light illumination as a possible microscopic driving force for enhanced degradation.