In this work, methylammonium lead trichloride (CH3NH3PbCl3) perovskite thin films were fabricated via a two-step spin coating and solvent-vapor-assisted thermal annealing method under low temperature. The films exhibited cubic crystalline structure and pinhole-free morphologies.The possible charge traps were investigated via the analysis of photoluminescence (PL) spectra of perovskite films prepared with different lead chloride (PbCl2) precursor concentrations while maintaining the same concentration of methylammonium chloride (CH3NH3Cl). Prototypical ultraviolet (UV) photodetectors with the structure of ITO/CH3NH3PbCl3/Poly (triaryl amine) (PTAA)/Al were fabricated and showed low dark current density 1.60 × 10 -5 mA/cm 2 under -1 V reverse bias, strong photoresponse in 300-400 nm region, and a high UV-visible rejection ratio up to 500 under 0 or -0.5 V bias. All the results demonstrated that low-temperature solution-processed CH3NH3PbCl3 perovskite thin films offer a great potential for making flexible, lightweight visible-blind UV-A photodetectors.

Binary lead and tin perovskites offer the benefits of narrower band gaps for broader adsorption of solar spectrum and better charge transport for higher photocurrent density. Here, we report the growth of large, smooth crystalline grains of bianry lead and tin triiodide perovskite films via a two-step solution process with thermal plus solvent vapor-assisted thermal annealing. The crystalline SnxPb1-xI2 films formed in the first step served as the templates for the formation of crystalline CH3NH3SnxPb1-xI3 films during the second step interdiffusion of methylammonium iodide (MAI). Followed by dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) vapor-assisted thermal annealing, small, faceted perovskite grains grew into large, smooth grains via the possible mechanism involving bond breaking and reforming mediated by DMSO solvent molecules. The absorption onset was extended to 950 and 1010 nm for the CH3NH3SnxPb1-xI3 perovskites with x = 0.1 and 0.25, respectively. The highest PCE of 10.25% was achieved from the planar perovskite solar cell with the CH3NH3Sn0.1Pb0.9I3 layer prepared via the thermal plus DMSO vapor-assisted thermal annealing. This research provides a way to control and manipulate film morphology, grain size, and especially the distribution of metal cations in binary metal perovskite layers, which opens an avenue to grow perovskite materials with desired properties to enhance device performance.