Periodic Reporting for period 1 - ConPLED (Nanostructured Confined ABX3 Perovskite based Light-Emitting Devices)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2019-04-01 al 2021-03-31
The development of low-cost, clean, and scalable energy solutions is imperative to securing a peaceful and sustainable future. Optoelectronic devices such as light-emitting diodes (LEDs) incorporating new, inexpensive materials show tremendous promise to alter the energy landscape by reducing the cost of energy consumption. However, the widespread adoption of LEDs demands new technologies to surpass the luminous efficacies of conventional LED light while having full control over the colour, brightness and directionality of the light source. Recently, a new class of semiconducting materials, ABX3 perovskites, is poised to revolutionise the LED field due to its ease of processing and outstanding electronic and optical properties. In this context, the ultimate goal of this proposal is the development of the first efficient white light LED based on luminescent nanostructured perovskites that feature tuneable on-demand emission properties.
In order to achieve these aims, a series of milestones, which are final goals per se, have been pursued:
Objective 1. Develop efficient luminescent nanomaterials. We have developed new synthesis routes to fabricate spatially confined ABX3 perovskite with emission spectra covering the entire visible region and compatible with thin-film processing aiming to integrate into LEDs that incorporate nanophotonic structures.
Objective 2. Design and develop nanostructured optical materials that shape the emission of halide perovskite films with unprecedented precision in order to attain full control over its colour quality and angular distribution. An optical modelling software package powered by a genetic algorithm has been developed. A hybrid photonic/plasmonic design has been identified as the one with the most promising array of attributes. We have fabricated and combined it with green-emitting perovskites to show the first example of perovskite emission shaped by this type of resonances.
Objective 3. Design and fabricate perovskite LEDs governed by quantum regime effects that give rise to an extensive palette of colours. Confinement effects have resulted in LEDs of improved performance with respect to the state-of-the-art when the project started: EQE~20% for green and EQE~1% for blue. A new perovskite based white light LED architecture has been attained.
In order to achieve these aims, a series of milestones, which are final goals per se, have been pursued:
Objective 1. Develop efficient luminescent nanomaterials. We have developed new synthesis routes to fabricate spatially confined ABX3 perovskite with emission spectra covering the entire visible region and compatible with thin-film processing aiming to integrate into LEDs that incorporate nanophotonic structures.
Objective 2. Design and develop nanostructured optical materials that shape the emission of halide perovskite films with unprecedented precision in order to attain full control over its colour quality and angular distribution. An optical modelling software package powered by a genetic algorithm has been developed. A hybrid photonic/plasmonic design has been identified as the one with the most promising array of attributes. We have fabricated and combined it with green-emitting perovskites to show the first example of perovskite emission shaped by this type of resonances.
Objective 3. Design and fabricate perovskite LEDs governed by quantum regime effects that give rise to an extensive palette of colours. Confinement effects have resulted in LEDs of improved performance with respect to the state-of-the-art when the project started: EQE~20% for green and EQE~1% for blue. A new perovskite based white light LED architecture has been attained.
The proposed objectives have been achieved through an iterative sequence of six interrelated work packages (WP). As an MSCA Fellow at the University of Cambridge, the fellow has co-authored 18 research articles. State-of-the-art blue perovskite based LEDs (ACS Energy Letters 2019) have been demonstrated. He has developed optical models to describe the behaviour of optoelectronic devices, with a special focus on PeLEDs (ACS Applied Energy Materials 2019; Nature Photonics 2019; Physical Review Letters 2020; ACS Energy Letters 2021). In addition, the fellow has developed new microscopy techniques to understand the interrelation between structural, chemical and photophysical properties of perovskite films (Adv. Mater. 2019; Nature, 2020; ACS Energy Letters 2020, Advanced Functional Materials 2021). These studies have allowed the fellow to elucidate perovskite working mechanisms and design record blue and green perovskite-based LEDs (external quantum efficiencies above 1% and 20%, respectively). Finally, we have developed a new methodology to attain white-light emission from a perovskite based LED. Manuscripts detailing these results are under preparation. The results obtained during this MSCA will support and enhance dozens of publications in the coming years. Cambridge Enterprise, the commercialisation arm of the University of Cambridge, is exploring the patentability of 3 concepts developed during this MSCA.
The fellow has also published two review papers on the emission properties of perovskites under illumination (crucial for LEDs) and on the progress in the perovskite based LED field (Adv. Ener. Materials, 2020; and Adv. Opt. Mater, 2021, respectively) and a comment on best practices to characterise emerging LEDs performance (Nature Photonics 2019). Access to knowledge by all has been guaranteed, divulgating results in open access through the repository of the University of Cambridge.
Results have been also publicised in diverse research forums, allowing the fellow to network with other peers in the field and in the industry. The fellow has presented the results at the MRS Fall Meeting, Boston, 2019, and in specific congresses dealing with perovskite devices such as NIPHO (Seville, 2020). In addition, the fellow has given invited talks at the Meeting of the Spanish Royal Society of Physics (Zaragoza, 2019), NanoMatMol (online 2020) and the LightEm Conference (online 2020), among others. In addition, the fellow has organised different conference symposia (“Strain in Nanomaterials” at the European Physical Society Conference, 2020; and the Meeting of the Association of Spanish Researchers in the UK, Liverpool 2019, among others), including one focused on light-mater interactions in perovskites (NanoGe, October 2021) and is guest-editing a special issue in the Journal of Applied Physics on Emerging Materials and Devices for Efficient Light Generation.
The MSCA Fellowship has represented key support that allowed the fellow to create a strong network and grow as a scholar. He heads the Light Emission Group in the Stranks Laboratory, and, after finalising the Fellowship, he is managing a European project to translate lab-scale devices into a commercial product (€150k). He is also managing two national grants (~£350,000) to install state-of-the-art equipment for the characterisation of emerging emitters.
Communicating science is crucial to engage new generations with research and explain to society how researchers make great use of everyone’s economic efforts to learn about our world and make it a better and more sustainable place to progress. In this regard, during this MSCA, the fellow has participated in 2019, 2020 and 2021 editions of the Physics at Work and Cambridge Science Festival, where talks and experiments were prepared to stimulate interest
The fellow has also published two review papers on the emission properties of perovskites under illumination (crucial for LEDs) and on the progress in the perovskite based LED field (Adv. Ener. Materials, 2020; and Adv. Opt. Mater, 2021, respectively) and a comment on best practices to characterise emerging LEDs performance (Nature Photonics 2019). Access to knowledge by all has been guaranteed, divulgating results in open access through the repository of the University of Cambridge.
Results have been also publicised in diverse research forums, allowing the fellow to network with other peers in the field and in the industry. The fellow has presented the results at the MRS Fall Meeting, Boston, 2019, and in specific congresses dealing with perovskite devices such as NIPHO (Seville, 2020). In addition, the fellow has given invited talks at the Meeting of the Spanish Royal Society of Physics (Zaragoza, 2019), NanoMatMol (online 2020) and the LightEm Conference (online 2020), among others. In addition, the fellow has organised different conference symposia (“Strain in Nanomaterials” at the European Physical Society Conference, 2020; and the Meeting of the Association of Spanish Researchers in the UK, Liverpool 2019, among others), including one focused on light-mater interactions in perovskites (NanoGe, October 2021) and is guest-editing a special issue in the Journal of Applied Physics on Emerging Materials and Devices for Efficient Light Generation.
The MSCA Fellowship has represented key support that allowed the fellow to create a strong network and grow as a scholar. He heads the Light Emission Group in the Stranks Laboratory, and, after finalising the Fellowship, he is managing a European project to translate lab-scale devices into a commercial product (€150k). He is also managing two national grants (~£350,000) to install state-of-the-art equipment for the characterisation of emerging emitters.
Communicating science is crucial to engage new generations with research and explain to society how researchers make great use of everyone’s economic efforts to learn about our world and make it a better and more sustainable place to progress. In this regard, during this MSCA, the fellow has participated in 2019, 2020 and 2021 editions of the Physics at Work and Cambridge Science Festival, where talks and experiments were prepared to stimulate interest
Here unique photonic approaches are combined with innovative ways to deposit state of the art confined perovskites to enable a future with inexpensive, ubiquitous, versatile lighting, helping to provide a large part of the world with lighting and displays while reducing overall energy consumption. This project directly impacts the categories “energy” and “environment” listed by the Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology as topics of interest, ensuring society is at the forefront of world innovation.
To date, little work has been carried out related to the combination of perovskites and photonics, and thus there is a unique opportunity for knowledge generation within the EU. The strong momentum of these fields has facilitated the development of novel strategies and materials during this project, which are bridging these two highly innovative fields, creating a new interdisciplinary area.
Breakthroughs on low cost, scalable perovskite emitters deliver impact in a variety of other areas, including lasers, detectors and optical communication devices. The systems produced within this project are generating interest in flexible electronics, allowing the EU to be a leader in the implementation of the internet of things and wearables, both currently in the spotlight.
To date, little work has been carried out related to the combination of perovskites and photonics, and thus there is a unique opportunity for knowledge generation within the EU. The strong momentum of these fields has facilitated the development of novel strategies and materials during this project, which are bridging these two highly innovative fields, creating a new interdisciplinary area.
Breakthroughs on low cost, scalable perovskite emitters deliver impact in a variety of other areas, including lasers, detectors and optical communication devices. The systems produced within this project are generating interest in flexible electronics, allowing the EU to be a leader in the implementation of the internet of things and wearables, both currently in the spotlight.