Boosting charge extraction and efficiency of inverted perovskite solar cells through coordinating group modification at the buffer layer/cathode interface

In inverted perovskite solar cells (PSCs),effective modification of the interface between the metalcathode and electron transport layer (ETL) is crucial forachieving high performance and stability. Herein, sulfonatedbathocuproine, commonly known as disodium bathocuproinedisulfonate (BCDS), was employed as a cathode buffer layerto address the interfacial issues at the [6,6]-phenyl-C61-butyricacid methyl ester (PCBM)/Ag interface. BCDS possesses theability to form coordinate bonds with Ag electrodes. Theutilization of the BCDS buffer layer enhanced the chargeextraction capability at the cathode interface whilesimultaneously achieving interfacial defect passivation,improving interfacial contact and increasing the built-in electricfield. Consequently, a power conversion efficiency (PCE) of25.06% was achieved. Furthermore, owing to the excellent filmforminguniformity of BCDS on PCBM, the stability of thedevice was also improved. After storage in dry air for morethan 2000 h, the device maintained 96% of its initial efficiency. This work underscores the remarkable potential of tailoringcoordination groups to enhance charge extraction efficiency at the ETL-cathode interface, unveiling a promising newfrontier in buffer layer development and performance optimization strategies for PSCs.