Reversible Multicolor Chromism in Layered Formamidinium Metal Halide Perovskites

Bryan Rosales, Laura Mundt, Taylor Allen, David Moore, Kevin Prince, Colin Wolden, Garry Rumbles, Laura Schelhas, Lance Wheeler

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

57 Scopus Citations

Abstract

Metal halide perovskites feature crystalline-like electronic band structures and liquid-like physical properties. The crystal–liquid duality enables optoelectronic devices with unprecedented performance and a unique opportunity to chemically manipulate the structure with low energy input. In this work, we leverage the low formation energy of metal halide perovskites to demonstrate multicolor reversible chromism. We synthesized layered Ruddlesden-Popper FAn+1PbnX3n+1 (FA = formamidinium, X = I, Br; n = number of layers = 1, 2, 3 … ∞) and reversibly tune the dimensionality (n) by modulating the strength and number of H-bonds in the system. H-bonding was controlled by exposure to solvent vapor (solvatochromism) or temperature change (thermochromism), which shuttles FAX salt pairs between the FAn+1PbnX3n+1 domains and adjacent FAX “reservoir” domains. Unlike traditional chromic materials that only offer a single-color transition, FAn+1PbnX3n+1 films reversibly switch between multiple colors including yellow, orange, red, brown, and white/colorless. Each colored phase exhibits distinct optoelectronic properties characteristic of 2D superlattice materials with tunable quantum well thickness.

Original languageAmerican English
Article numberArticle No. 5234
Number of pages12
JournalNature Communications
Volume11
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Dec 2020

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2020, This is a U.S. Government work and not under copyright protection in the US; foreign copyright protection may apply.

NREL Publication Number

  • NREL/JA-5900-76099

Keywords

  • chromism
  • formamidinium
  • perovskites
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