Deep Levels and Mixed Conductivity in Organometallic Halide Perovskites

Abstract: Understanding the type, formation energy and capture cross section of defects is one of the challenges in the field of organometallic halide perovskite (OMHP) devices. Currently, such understanding is limited, restricting the power conversion efficiencies of OMHPs solar cells from reaching their Shockley Queisser limit. Here, we report on deep level (DL) defects and their effect on free charge transport properties of single crystalline methylammonium lead bromide perovskite (MAPB). In order to determine DL activation energy and capture cross section we used photo-Hall effect spectroscopy (PHES) with enhanced illumination in both steady-state and dynamic regimes. This method has shown to be convenient due to the direct DL visualization by sub-bandgap photo-excitation of trapped carriers. DLs with activation energies of 1.05 eV, 1.5 eV, and 1.9 eV above valence band were detected. The hole capture cross section was found using photoconductivity relaxation after sub-bandgap photo-excitation. We found the DL defects responsible for non-radiative recombination and its impact on band alignment for the first time. Additionally, the transport properties of MAPB single crystal is measured by Time of Flight (ToF) at several biases. The analysis of ToF measurement further confirms increase of Hall mobility and the enhancement of hole transport produced by sub-bandgap illumination in MAPB devices. Our studies provide a strong evidence on deep levels in OMHPs and opens a richer picture of the role and properties of deep levels in MAPB single crystals as a system model for the first time. The deeper knowledge of the electrical structure of OMHP could open further opportunities in the development of more feasible technology.