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Although C₆₀is usually the electron transport layer (ETL) in inverted perovskite solar cells, its molecular nature of C₆₀leads to weak interfaces that lead to non-ideal interfacial electronic and mechanical degradation. Here, we synthesized an ionic salt from C₆₀, 4-(1',5′-dihydro-1'-methyl-2'H-[5,6] fullereno-C₆₀-I_h-[1,9-c]pyrrol-2'-yl) phenylmethanaminium chloride (CPMAC), and used it as the electron shuttle in inverted PSCs. The CH₂-NH₃⁺head group in the CPMA cation improved the ETL interface and the ionic nature enhanced the packing, leading to ~3-fold increase in the interfacial toughness compared to C₆₀. Using CPMAC, we obtained ~26% power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) with ~2% degradation after 2,100 hours of 1-sun operation at 65°C. For minimodules (four subcells, 6 centimeters square), we achieved the PCE of ~23% with <9% degradation after 2,200 hours of operation at 55°C. 

Silicon is an extremely important technological material, but the current industrial production of silicon by carbothermic reduction of SiO₂ is energy intensive and generates CO₂ emission. Here we developed a new and more sustainable method to produce silicon nanowires in bulk quantities via direct electrochemical reduction of CaSiO₃, an abundant and inexpensive silicon source soluble in molten salts, at a low temperature of 650 ⁰C by using low melting point ternary molten salts CaCl₂-MgCl₂-NaCl, which still retains high CaSiO₃ solubility, and a supporting electrolyte of CaO, which facilitates the transport of O²¯ anions, drastically improves the reaction kinetics and enables the electrolysis at low temperatures. The Si nanowire product can be used as high-capacity Li-ion battery anode materials with excellent cycling performance. This practical strategy at lower temperatures can be applied to other molten salt systems and also promising for waste glass and coal ash recycling. 

The light-emitting diodes (LEDs) used in indoor testing of perovskite solar cells do not expose them to the levels of ultraviolet (UV) radiation that they would receive in actual outdoor use. We report degradation mechanisms of p-i-n–structured perovskite solar cells under unfiltered sunlight and with LEDs. Weak chemical bonding between perovskites and polymer hole-transporting materials (HTMs) and transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) dominate the accelerated A-site cation migration, rather than direct degradation of HTMs. An aromatic phosphonic acid, [2-(9-ethyl-9H-carbazol-3-yl)ethyl]phosphonic acid (EtCz3EPA), enhanced bonding at the perovskite/HTM/TCO region with a phosphonic acid group bonded to TCOs and a nitrogen group interacting with lead in perovskites. A hybrid HTM of EtCz3EPA with strong hole-extraction polymers retained high efficiency and improved the UV stability of perovskite devices, and a champion perovskite minimodule—independently measured by the Perovskite PV Accelerator for Commercializing Technologies (PACT) center—retained operational efficiency of >16% after 29 weeks of outdoor testing.