Abstract
Methylammonium lead iodide (MAPbI3)–based perovskites are often regarded as unstable under light and heat; however, previous studies have not fully clarified the influence of residual lead iodide (PbI2) in thin films, which may have led to misinterpretations of their intrinsic stability. In this work, we propose a precursor-engineering strategy in which pre-synthesized MAPbI3 single crystals are re-dissolved to prepare coating solutions, thereby producing MAPbI3 films free of residual PbI2. Devices fabricated using this method achieved a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of 21.55%, significantly higher than the 18.61% obtained from control devices prepared using conventional precursor solutions. Moreover, the single crystal-derived devices exhibited remarkable long-term stability, retaining 98% of their initial efficiency after 1000 h of storage, whereas the control devices degraded to below 50% of their initial performance. Extensive characterizations of the single crystal-derived films revealed the degradation pathways induced by residual PbI2 in MAPbI3, confirming the superiority of this precursor design strategy. Importantly, these single crystal-derived films were further applied in mini-modules, achieving a PCE of 19.82% under 1-sun illumination and 39.66% under 6000 lux indoor light, underscoring their great potential for both outdoor and indoor photovoltaic applications.
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Acknowledgements
This project has received funding from the National Science and Technology Council, Taiwan (112-2221-E-007-013-MY3) and (113-2218-E-007-012-), and a grant from National Tsing-Hua University, Taiwan (112B3031J2).
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Tzu-Chien Wei: writing – review & editing, supervision, resources, funding acquisition, conceptualization. Shafna Kunnathum Peedika: writing – review & editing, writing – original draft, validation, designed the experiments, formal analysis, data curation, conceptualization. Vidya Kattoor: writing – review & editing. All authors contributed to the writing and revision.
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Communications Materials thanks Duangmanee Wongratanaphisan, Jie Xiong, and K. Chandra Babu Naidu for their contribution to the peer review of this work.
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Kunnathumpeedika, S., Kattoor, V. & Wei, TC. Enhancing performance and stability of methylammonium lead iodide-based perovskite solar cells using single-crystal precursors. Commun Mater (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43246-026-01123-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s43246-026-01123-y
