A colloidal quantum dot solar cell is fabricated by spray-coating under ambient conditions. By developing a room-temperature spray-coating technique and implementing a fully automated process with near monolayer control-an approach termed as sprayLD-an electronic defect is eliminated resulting in solar cell performance and statistical distribution superior to prior batch-processed methods along with a hero performance of 8.1%.

Colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) are semiconductor nanocrystals synthesized with, processed in, and deposited from the solution phase, potentially enabling low-cost, facile manufacture of solar cells. Unfortunately, CQD solar cell reports, until now, have only explored batch-processing methods—such as spin-coating—that offer limited capacity for scaling. Spray-coating could offer a means of producing uniform colloidal quantum dot films that yield high-quality devices. Here, we explore the versatility of the spray-coating method by producing CQD solar cells in a variety of previously unexplored substrate arrangements. The potential transferability of the spray-coating method to a roll-to-roll manufacturing process was tested by spray-coating the CQD active layer onto six substrates mounted on a rapidly rotating drum, yielding devices with an average power conversion efficiency of 6.7%. We further tested the manufacturability of the process by endeavoring to spray onto flexible substrates, only to find that spraying while the substrate was flexed was crucial to achieving champion performance of 7.2% without compromise to open-circuit voltage. Having deposited onto a substrate with one axis of curvature, we then built our CQD solar cells onto a spherical lens substrate having two axes of curvature resulting in a 5% efficient device. These results show that CQDs deposited using our spraying method can be integrated to large-area manufacturing processes and can be used to make solar cells on unconventional shapes.

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Colloidal quantum dot films have seen rapid progress as active materials in photodetection, light emission, and photovoltaics. Their processing from the solution phase makes them an attractive option for these applications due to the expected cost reductions associated with liquid-phase material deposition. Colloidally stable nanoparticles capped using long, insulating aliphatic ligands are used to form semiconducting, insoluble films via a solid-state ligand exchange in which the original ligands are replaced with short bifunctional ligands. Here we show that this ligand exchange can have unintended and undesired side effects: a high molecular weight complex can form, containing both lead oleate and the shorter conductive ligand, and this poorly soluble complex can end up embedded within the colloidal quantum dot (CQD) active layer. We further show that, by adding an acidic treatment during film processing, we can break up and wash away these complexes, producing a higher quality CQD solid. The improved material leads to photovoltaic devices with reduced series resistance and enhanced fill factor relative to controls employing previously reported CQD solids.