Metal Halide Perovskite Nanorods: Shape Matters

CsPbBr3 Perovskite Crack Platelet Nanocrystals and Their Biexciton Generation

Lead halide perovskite nanocrystals have been extensively studied in recent years as efficient optical materials for their bright and color-tunable emissions. However, these are mostly confined to their 3D nanocrystals and limited to the anisotropic nanostructures. By exploring the Cs-sublattice-induced metal(II) ion exchange with Pb(II), crack CsPbBr3 perovskite platelet nanocrystals having polar surfaces in all three directions are reported here, which remained different than reported standard square platelets. The crack platelets are also passivated with halides to enhance their brightness. Further, as these crack and passivated crack platelets have defects and polar surfaces, the exciton and biexciton generation in these platelets is investigated using femtosecond photoluminescence and transient absorption measurement at ambient as well as cryogenic temperatures, correlated with time-resolved single-particle photoluminescence spectroscopy, and compared with standard square platelets having nonpolar facets. These investigations revealed that the crack platelets and passivated crack platelets possess enhanced biexciton emission compared to square platelets due to the presence of polar surfaces in all three directions. These results provide insights into not only the design of the anisotropic nanostructures of ionic nanocrystals but also the possibility of tuning the single exciton to biexciton generation efficiency, which has potential applications in optoelectronic systems.

One-Step Fabrication of 0D Cs4PbBr6 Perovskite with Nonlinear Optical Properties for Ultrafast Pulse Generation

Low-dimensional lead halide perovskites demonstrate remarkable nonlinear optical characteristics attributed to their distinctive physical structures and electronic properties. Nevertheless, the investigation into their nonlinear optical properties remains in its incipient stages. This study addresses this gap by precisely controlling solvent volumes to synthesize both 0D Cs4PbBr6 and Cs4PbBr6/CsPbBr3 perovskites. Remarkably, as saturable absorbers, both pure Cs4PbBr6 and Cs4PbBr6/CsPbBr3 composites exhibit favorable nonlinear optical properties within the C-band, showcasing modulation depths of 9.22% and 16.83%, respectively. Moreover, for the first time, Cs4PbBr6 and Cs4PbBr6/CsPbBr3 composites have been successfully integrated into erbium-doped fiber lasers to realize the mode-locking operations. The utilization of the Cs4PbBr6/CsPbBr3 composites as a saturable absorber that enables the generation of conventional soliton mode-locked laser pulses with a pulse duration of 688 fs, and a repetition frequency of 10.947 MHz at a central wavelength of 1557 nm. Cs4PbBr6 is instrumental in generating laser pulses at a frequency of 10.899 MHz, producing pulse widths of 642 fs at the central wavelength of 1531.2 nm and 1.02 ps at the central wavelength of 1565.3 nm, respectively. The findings of this investigation underscore the potential utility of 0D Cs4PbBr6 and Cs4PbBr6/CsPbBr3 composites as promising materials for optical modulation within fiber laser applications.

Mimicking nature to develop halide perovskite semiconductors from proteins and metal carbonates

Halide perovskite (HPs) nanostructures have recently gained extensive worldwide attentions because of their remarkable optoelectronic properties and fast developments. However, intrinsic instability against environmental factors-i.e., temperature, humidity, illumination, and oxygen-restricted their real-life applications. HPs are typically synthesized as colloids by employing organic solvents and ligands. Consequently, the precise control and tuning of complex 3D perovskite morphologies are challenging and have hardly been achieved by conventional fabrication methods. Here, we combine the benefits of self-assembly of biomolecules and an ion exchange reaction (IER) approach to customize HPs spatial shapes and composition. Initially, we apply a biomineralization approach, using biological templates (such as biopolymers, proteins, or protein assemblies), modulating the morphology of MCO3 (M = Ca2+, Ba2+) nano/microstructures. We then show that the morphology of the materials can be maintained throughout an IER process to form surface HPs with a wide variety of morphologies. The fabricated core-shell structures of metal carbonates and HPs introduce nano/microcomposites that can be sculpted into a wide diversity of 3D architectures suitable for various potential applications such as sensors, detectors, catalysis, etc. As a prototype, we fabricate disposable humidity sensors with an 11-95% detection range by casting the formed bio-templated nano/micro-composites on paper substrate.

Dual Passivation Strategy for Highly Stable Blue-Luminescent CsPbBr3 Nanoplatelets

Blue-emitting colloidal CsPbX3 (X = Br, Cl, or I) perovskite nanocrystals have emerged as one of the most fascinating materials for optoelectronic applications. However, their applicability is hindered by poor stability and a low photoluminescence efficiency. Herein, highly stable CsPbBr3 nanoplatelets exhibiting intense blue luminescence are fabricated by employing a strategy in which the morphology is regulated and the surface is subjected to dual passivation through the incorporation of zirconium acetylacetonate [Zr(acac)4]. The passivated CsPbBr3 nanocrystals exhibit adjustable light emission from green to dark blue and a controllable morphology from nanocubes (NCs) to nanoplatelets (NPLs) and nanorods accomplished by varying the content of Zr(acac)4. The optimized NPLs are characterized by a bright blue emission with a central wavelength of 459 nm and a high photoluminescence quantum yield of 90%. The addition of Zr(acac)4 in the synthesis of CsPbBr3 induces oriented growth with a two-dimensional morphology. The Zr(acac)4 can repair the surface defects of the nanocrystal surface, and the surface is also capped with the Zr(OH)4 cluster layer. Therefore, the passivated blue-emitting NPLs exhibit outstanding stability compared to that of pristine NPLs during long-term storage and exposure to light. This work provides a novel strategy for fabricating highly stable PNCs with deep-blue emission and widens their potential applications in blue-emitting optoelectronic devices.

Perovskite Colloidal Nanocrystal Solar Cells: Current Advances, Challenges, and Future Perspectives

The power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of polycrystalline perovskite (PVK) solar cells (SCs) (PC-PeSCs) have rapidly increased. However, PC-PeSCs are intrinsically unstable without encapsulation, and their efficiency drops during large-scale production; these problems hinder the commercial viability of PeSCs. Stability can be increased by using colloidal PVK nanocrystals (c-PeNCs), which have high surface strains, low defect density, and exceptional crystal quality. The use of c-PeNCs separates the crystallization process from the film formation process, which is preponderant in large-scale fabrication. Consequently, the use of c-PeNCs has substantial potential to overcome challenges encountered when fabricating PC-PeSCs. Research on colloidal nanocrystal-based PVK SCs (NC-PeSCs) has increased their PCEs to a level greater than those of other quantum-dot SCs, but has not reached the PCEs of PC-PeSCs; this inferiority significantly impedes widespread application of NC-PeSCs. This review first introduces the distinctive properties of c-PeNCs, then the strategies that have been used to achieve high-efficiency NC-PeSCs. Then it discusses in detail the persisting challenges in this domain. Specifically, the major challenges and solutions for NC-PeSCs related to low short-circuit current density Jsc are covered. Last, the article presents a perspective on future research directions and potential applications in the realm of NC-PeSCs.

Recent Advances in Low-Dimensional Nanomaterials for Photodetectors

New emerging low-dimensional such as 0D, 1D, and 2D nanomaterials have attracted tremendous research interests in various fields of state-of-the-art electronics, optoelectronics, and photonic applications due to their unique structural features and associated electronic, mechanical, and optical properties as well as high-throughput fabrication for large-area and low-cost production and integration. Particularly, photodetectors which transform light to electrical signals are one of the key components in modern optical communication and developed imaging technologies for whole application spectrum in the daily lives, including X-rays and ultraviolet biomedical imaging, visible light camera, and infrared night vision and spectroscopy. Today, diverse photodetector technologies are growing in terms of functionality and performance beyond the conventional silicon semiconductor, and low-dimensional nanomaterials have been demonstrated as promising potential platforms. In this review, the current states of progress on the development of these nanomaterials and their applications in the field of photodetectors are summarized. From the elemental combination for material design and lattice structure to the essential investigations of hybrid device architectures, various devices and recent developments including wearable photodetectors and neuromorphic applications are fully introduced. Finally, the future perspectives and challenges of the low-dimensional nanomaterials based photodetectors are also discussed.

Strategies to control mycotoxins and toxigenic fungi contamination by nano-semiconductor in food and agro-food: a review

Mycotoxins are toxic secondary metabolites generated from toxigenic fungi in the contaminated food and agro-food, which have been regarded as a serious threat to the food safety and human health. Therefore, the control of mycotoxins and toxigenic fungi contamination is of great significance and has attracted the increasing attention of researchers. As we know, nano-semiconductors have many unique properties such as large surface area, structural stability, good biocompatibility, excellent photoelectrical properties, and low cost, which have been developed and applied in many research fields. Recently, nano-semiconductors have also been promisingly applied in mitigating or controlling mycotoxins and toxigenic fungi contaminations in food and agro-food. In this review, the type, occurrence, and toxicity of main mycotoxins in food and agro-food were introduced. Then, a variety of strategies to mitigate the mycotoxin contamination based on nano-semiconductors involving mycotoxins detection, inhibition of toxigenic fungi, and mycotoxins degradation were summarized. Finally, the outlook, opportunities, and challenges have prospected in the future for the mitigation of mycotoxins and toxigenic fungi based on nano-semiconductors.

Synthesis of Layered Lead-Free Perovskite Nanocrystals with Precise Size and Shape Control and Their Photocatalytic Activity

Halide perovskites have attracted enormous attention due to their potential applications in optoelectronics and photocatalysis. However, concerns over their instability, toxicity, and unsatisfactory efficiency have necessitated the development of lead-free all-inorganic halide perovskites. A major challenge in designing efficient halide perovskites for practical applications is the lack of effective methods for producing nanocrystals with precise size and shape control. In this work, a layered perovskite, Cs4ZnSb2Cl12 (CZS), is found from calculations to exhibit size- and facet-dependent optoelectronic properties in the nanoscale, and thus, a colloidal method is used to synthesize the CZS nanoparticles with size-tunable morphologies: zero- (nanodots), one- (nanowires and nanorods), two- (nanoplates), and three-dimensional (nanopolyhedra). The growth kinetics of the CZS nanostructures, along with the effects of surface ligands, reaction temperature, and time were investigated. The optoelectronic properties of the nanocrystals varied with size due to quantum confinement effects and with shape due to anisotropy within the crystals and the exposure of specific facets. These properties could be modulated to enhance the visible-light photocatalytic performance for toluene oxidation. In particular, the 9.7 nm CZS nanoplates displayed a toluene to benzaldehyde conversion rate of 1893 μmol g-1 h-1 (95% selectivity), 500 times higher than the bulk synthesized CZS, and comparable with the reported photocatalysts. This study demonstrates the integration of theoretical calculations and synthesis, revealing an approach to the design and fabrication of novel, high-performance colloidal perovskite nanocrystals for optoelectronic and photocatalytic applications.

The Anisotropic Complex Dielectric Function of CsPbBr3 Perovskite Nanorods Obtained via an Iterative Matrix Inversion Method

Colloidal lead halide perovskite nanorods have recently emerged as promising optoelectronic materials. However, more information about how shape anisotropy impacts their complex dielectric function is required to aid the development of applications that take advantage of the strongly polarized absorption and emission. Here, we have determined the anisotropy of the complex dielectric function of CsPbBr3 nanorods by analyzing the ensemble absorption spectra in conjunction with the ensemble spectral fluorescence anisotropy. This strategy allows us to distinguish the absorption of light parallel and perpendicular to the main axis so that the real and imaginary components of the dielectric function along each direction can be determined by the use of an iterative matrix inversion (IMI) methodology. We find that quantum confinement gives rise to unique axis-dependent electronic features in the dielectric function that increase the overall fluorescence anisotropy in addition to the optical anisotropy that results from particle shape, even in the absence of quantum confinement. Further, the procedure outlined here provides a strategy for obtaining anisotropic complex dielectric functions of colloidal materials of varying composition and aspect ratios using ensemble solution-phase spectroscopy.

Magnetically Induced Anisotropic Interaction in Colloidal Assembly

The wide accessibility to nanostructures with high uniformity and controllable sizes and morphologies provides great opportunities for creating complex superstructures with unique functionalities. Employing anisotropic nanostructures as the building blocks significantly enriches the superstructural phases, while their orientational control for obtaining long-range orders has remained a significant challenge. One solution is to introduce magnetic components into the anisotropic nanostructures to enable precise control of their orientations and positions in the superstructures by manipulating magnetic interactions. Recognizing the importance of magnetic anisotropy in colloidal assembly, we provide here an overview of magnetic field-guided self-assembly of magnetic nanoparticles with typical anisotropic shapes, including rods, cubes, plates, and peanuts. The Review starts with discussing the magnetic energy of nanoparticles, appreciating the vital roles of magneto-crystalline and shape anisotropies in determining the easy magnetization direction of the anisotropic nanostructures. It then introduces superstructures assembled from various magnetic building blocks and summarizes their unique properties and intriguing applications. It concludes with a discussion of remaining challenges and an outlook of future research opportunities that the magnetic assembly strategy may offer for colloidal assembly.

Vertex-Oriented Cube-Connected Pattern in CsPbBr3 Perovskite Nanorods and Their Optical Properties: An Ensemble to Single-Particle Study

The design of cube-connected nanorods is accomplished by connecting seed nanocrystals of a defined shape in a particular orientation or by etching selective facets of preformed nanorods. In lead halide perovskite nanostructures, which retain mostly a hexahedron cube shape, such patterned nanorods can be designed with the anisotropic direction along the edge, vertex, or facet of seed cubes. Combining the Cs-sublattice platform for transforming metal halides to halide perovskites with facet-specific ligand binding chemistry, herein, vertex-oriented patterning of nanocubes in one-dimensional (1D) rod structures is reported. By tuning the length of host metal halides, their lengths could also be tuned from 100 nm to nearly 1000 nm. The symmetry of the hexagonal phase of host halide CsCdBr₃ and product orthorhombic CsPbBr₃ helped in maintaining the vertex [201] as the anisotropic direction. Neutral exciton recombination rates, extracted from photoluminescence blinking traces, showed a systematic increase from isolated cubes to cube-connected nanorods of various lengths. Efficient coupling of wave functions in vertex-oriented cube assemblies permits exciton delocalization. Our findings on carrier delocalization in cube-connected nanorods along their vertex direction having minimum interfacial contacts provide valuable insights into the fundamental chemistry of assembling anisotropic halide perovskite nanostructures as conducting wires.

Unveiling the Localized Exciton-Based Photoluminescence of Manganese Doped Cesium Zinc Halide Nanocrystals

Lead-free metal halide nanocrystals (NCs) have aroused increasing attention due to their unique optoelectronic properties based on localized excitons (LEs). However, the vital influencing factors for the LEs based photoluminescence (PL) are still not well-understood due to the coupling of various intrinsic and extrinsic factors of the NCs. Herein, by engineering the phase, size, morphology, and chemical composition, we are able to decouple the intrinsic and extrinsic factors of manganese doped cesium zinc-halide NCs. We found both the intrinsic metal-halide coordination field and the extrinsic crystal defects have significant influences on the LEs' recombination and energy transfer processes, and hence determine the PL efficiency. Unlike for the free excitons (FEs) based PL, the phase as well as the crystal morphology do not play major roles for the LEs based PL. This work provides a new insight for the study of LE dynamics of metal halide NCs.

Hexahedron Symmetry and Multidirectional Facet Coupling of Orthorhombic CsPbBr3 Nanocrystals

The cube shape of orthorhombic phase CsPbBr₃ nanocrystals possesses the ability of selective facet packing that leads to 1D, 2D, and 3D nanostructures. In solution, their transformation with linear one-dimensional packing to nanorods/nanowires is extensively studied. Here, multifacet coupling in two directions of the truncated cube nanocrystals to rod couples and then to single-crystalline rectangular rods is reported. With extensive high-resolution transmission electron microscopy image analysis, length and width directions of these nanorods are derived. For the seed cube structures, finding {110} and {002} facets has remained difficult as these possess the hexahedron symmetry and their size remains smaller; however, for nanorods, these planes and the ⟨110⟩ and ⟨001⟩ directions are clearly identified. From nanocrystal to nanorod formation, the alignment directions are observed as random (as shown in the abstract graphic), and this could vary from one to the other rods obtained in the same batch of samples. Moreover, seed nanocrystal connections are derived here as not random and are rather induced by addition of the calculated amount of additional Pb(II). The same has also been extended to nanocubes obtained from different literature methods. It is predicted that a Pb-bromide buffer octahedra layer was created to connect two cubes, and this can connect along one, two, or even more facets of cubes simultaneously to connect other cubes and form different nanostructures. Hence, these results here provide some basic fundamentals of seed cube connections, the driving force to connect those, trapping the intermediate to visualize their alignments for attachments, and identifying and establishing the orthorhombic ⟨110⟩ and ⟨001⟩ directions of the length and width of CsPbBr₃ nanostructures.

CsPbBr3-DMSO merged perovskite micro-bricks for efficient X-ray detection

Inorganic perovskite wafers with good stability and adjustable sizes are promising in X-ray detection but the high synthetic temperature is a hindrance. Herein, dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) is used to prepare the CsPbBr3 micro-bricks powder at room temperature. The CsPbBr3 powder has a cubic shape with few crystal defects, small charge trap density, and high crystallinity. A trace amount of DMSO attaches to the surface of the CsPbBr3 micro-bricks via Pb-O bonding, forming the CsPbBr3-DMSO adduct. During hot isostatic processing, the released DMSO vapor merges the CsPbBr3 micro-bricks, producing a compact and dense CsPbBr3 wafer with minimized grain boundaries and excellent charge transport properties. The CsPbBr3 wafer shows a large mobility-lifetime (μτ) product of 5.16 × 10-4 cm2·V-1, high sensitivity of 14,430 μC·Gyair-1·cm-2, low detection limit of 564 nGyair·s-1, as well as robust stability in X-ray detection. The results reveal a novel strategy with immense practical potential pertaining to high-contrast X-ray detection.

Electronic Supplementary Material

Supplementary material (further details of the characterization, SEM images, AFM images, KPFM images, schematic illustration, XRD patterns, XPS spectra, FTIR spectra, UPS spectra, and stability tests) is available in the online version of this article at 10.1007/s12274-023-5487-3.

Solely 3-Coordinated Organic-Inorganic Hybrid Copper(I) Halide: Hexagonal Channel Structure, Turn-On Response to Mechanical Force, Moisture, and Amine

Herein, we report a novel organic-inorganic hybrid Cu^I halide PyCs₃Cu₂Br₆ (Py: pyridinium), where pyridinium and cesium ions coexist. We successfully develop a novel strategy for fabricating turn-on responsive materials. PyCs₃Cu₂Br₆ has a higher single-crystal symmetry (no. 191) than its all-inorganic counterpart Cs₃Cu₂Br₅ (no. 62), and the incorporation of organic pyridinium varied the coordination environment of Cu^I. PyCs₃Cu₂Br₆ formed a triangle planar structure with solely 3-coordinated Cu^I ions, which quenched its luminescence. However, PyCs₃Cu₂Br₆ presented a hexagonal channel structure, which enabled it with turn-on response upon mechanical force, heat, moisture, and amine vapor. Such structure offered channels for active molecules to diffuse and interact with pyridiniums, leading to the stimuli-triggered phase change to highly emissive Cs₃Cu₂Br₅. To our best knowledge, for the first time, we discover a novel 3-coordinated organic-inorganic hybrid Cu^I halide with turn-on response to external stimuli. We believe that our study will contribute to expanding the landscape of smart stimulus-responsive materials and lay the foundation for their wide applications.

Highly Anisotropic Organometal Halide Perovskite Nanowalls Grown by Glancing-Angle Deposition

Polarizers are ubiquitous components in current optoelectronic devices as displays or photographic cameras. Yet, control over light polarization is an unsolved challenge, since the main drawback of the existing display technologies is the significant optical losses. In such a context, organometal halide perovskites (OMHP) can play a decisive role given their flexible synthesis with tunable optical properties such as bandgap and photoluminescence, and excellent light emission with a low non-radiative recombination rate. Therefore, along with their outstanding electrical properties have elevated hybrid perovskites as the material of choice in photovoltaics and optoelectronics. Among the different OMHP nanostructures, nanowires and nanorods have lately arisen as key players in the control of light polarization for lighting or detector applications. Herein, the fabrication of highly aligned and anisotropic methylammonium lead iodide perovskite nanowalls by glancing-angle deposition, which is compatible with most substrates, is presented. Their high alignment degree provides the samples with anisotropic optical properties such as light absorption and photoluminescence. Furthermore, their implementation in photovoltaic devices provides them with a polarization-sensitive response. This facile vacuum-based approach embodies a milestone in the development of last-generation polarization-sensitive perovskite-based optoelectronic devices such as lighting appliances or self-powered photodetectors.

A Multifunctional Ionic Liquid Additive Enabling Stable and Efficient Perovskite Light-Emitting Diodes

The electroluminescence performance and long-term stability of perovskite light-emitting diodes (PeLEDs) are greatly affected by the film quality of perovskite emitting layer. Herein, the authors employ an ionic liquid, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium trifluoromethanesulfonate ([BMIm]OTf), to manipulate the growth of quasi-2D perovskite films by providing heterogeneous nucleation sites. The [BMIm]OTf molecules simultaneously realize uniform perovskite films by reducing the contact angles of precursor solution on the hole transport layer (HTL), and eliminate defect states through bonding [BMIm]⁺ cations to negatively-charged uncoordinated Br and OTf^- anions to uncoordinated Pb²⁺ defects that effectively suppresses the defect states assisted nonradiative recombination in perovskite films. As a result, the efficiency and the operational lifetime of the resultant PeLED are enhanced by more than twofold and threefold, respectively, achieving a maximum external quantum efficiency of 17.6% and an operational lifetime of over 500 min at an initial brightness of 100 cd m^-2 .

Ligand-modified synthesis of shape-controllable and highly luminescent CsPbBr3 perovskite nanocrystals under ambient conditions

The intrinsic insights of ligand-modified shape-transformation of CsPbBr3 nanocrystals between nanocubes and nanorods are revealed systematically, which can accelerate their practical applications in the optoelectronic field.

Size-tunable and stable cesium lead-bromide perovskite nanocubes with near-unity photoluminescence quantum yield

Stable cesium lead bromide perovskite nanocrystals (NCs) showing a near-unity photoluminescence quantum yield (PLQY), narrow emission profile, and tunable fluorescence peak in the green region can be considered the ideal class of nanomaterials for optoelectronic applications. However, a general route for ensuring the desired features of the perovskite NCs is still missing. In this paper, we propose a synthetic protocol for obtaining near-unity PLQY perovskite nanocubes, ensuring their size control and, consequently, a narrow and intense emission through the modification of the reaction temperature and the suitable combination ratio of the perovskite constituting elements. The peculiarity of this protocol is represented by the dissolution of the lead precursor (PbBr₂) as a consequence of the exclusive complexation with the bromide anions released by the in situ SN₂ reaction between oleylamine (the only surfactant introduced in the reaction mixture) and 1-bromohexane. The obtained CsPbBr₃ nanocubes exhibit variable size (ranging from 6.7 ± 0.7 nm to 15.2 ± 1.2 nm), PL maxima between 505 and 517 nm, and near-unity PLQY with a narrow emission profile (fwhm of 17-19 nm). Additionally, the NCs synthesized with this approach preserve their high PLQYs even after 90 days of storage under ambient conditions, thus displaying a remarkable optical stability. Through the rationalization of the obtained results, the proposed synthetic protocol provides a new ground for the direct preparation of differently structured perovskite NCs without resorting to any additional post-synthetic treatment for improving their emission efficiency and stability.

Introducing B-Site Cations by Ion Exchange and Shape Anisotropy in CsPbBr3 Perovskite Nanostructures

Lead halide perovskite nanocrystals, whether formed by their own nucleation and growth or by ion diffusion into the lattice of others, are still under investigation. Moreover, beyond isotropic nanocrystals, fabricating anisotropic perovskite nanocrystals by design has remained difficult. Exploring the lattice of orthorhombic-phase Cs₂ZnBr₄ with the complete replacement of Zn tetrahedra by Pb octahedra, dimension-tunable anisotropic nanocrystals of CsPbBr₃ are reported. This B-site ion introduction led to CsPbBr₃ nanorods having [100] as major axis, in contrast with all reports on rods/wires where the lengths were along the [001] direction. This was possible by using derivatives of α-bromo ketones, which helped in tuning the shape of Cs₂ZnBr₄ and also the facets of transformed CsPbBr₃. While similar experiments are extended to orthorhombic Cs₂HgBr₄, standard nanorods with [001] as the major axis were observed. From these results, it is further concluded that anisotropic perovskite nanocrystals might not follow any specific rules for directional growth and instead might depend on the structure of the parent lattice.