The development of highly efficient hole transport materials
(HTMs)
for perovskite solar cells (PSCs) has been a hot research topic. Acridine
and its derivatives are gradually utilized as new blocks for optoelectronic
applications, which stems from its rigid conjugated structure, shedding
a new light on this old molecule. Meanwhile, its application in PSCs
as a HTM has not been well explored, and the efficiency of 9,10-dihydroacridine
(ACR)-based HTMs is relatively low. In this work, we conduct a systematic
modulation of the peripheral substituents for ACR core building block-based
HTMs and investigate the effects of the electron-donating ability
and π-conjugation of peripheral groups on the photovoltaic performance
of the corresponding HTMs. It is found that the peripheral groups
with a weaker electron-donating ability and stronger π-conjugation
are more suitable for the acridine core, which itself has a stronger
electron-donating ability. Through molecular engineering, the newly
developed HTM ACR-PhDM achieves an impressive power conversion
efficiency of 23.5%. Our work lays the foundation for the design and
development of efficient HTMs in the future.