Pressure-induced emission of cesium lead halide perovskite nanocrystals.

Ma, Zhiwei; Liu, Zhun; Lu, Siyu; Wang, Lingrui; Feng, Xiaolei; Yang, Dongwen; Wang, Kai; Xiao, Guanjun et al. · Nat Commun · 2018

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Metal halide perovskites (MHPs) are of great interest for optoelectronics because of their high quantum efficiency in solar cells and light-emitting devices. However, exploring an effective strategy to further improve their optical activities remains a considerable challenge. Here, we report that nanocrystals (NCs) of the initially nonfluorescent zero-dimensional (0D) cesium lead halide perovskite Cs<sub>4</sub>PbBr<sub>6</sub> exhibit a distinct emission under a high pressure of 3.01 GPa. Subsequently, the emission intensity of Cs<sub>4</sub>PbBr<sub>6</sub> NCs experiences a significant increase upon further compression. Joint experimental and theoretical analyses indicate that such pressure-induced emission (PIE) may be ascribed to the enhanced optical activity and the increased binding energy of self-trapped excitons upon compression. This phenomenon is a result of the large distortion of [PbBr<sub>6</sub>]<sup>4-</sup> octahedral motifs resulting from a structural phase transition. Our findings demonstrate that high pressure can be a robust tool to boost the photoluminescence efficiency and provide insights into the relationship between the structure and optical properties of 0D MHPs under extreme conditions.