On 2 July 2026, a research team from SCUT achieved a major breakthrough in the fabrication of self-assembled molecular interfaces. The related findings were published in the prestigious journal Nature under the title “Electrodeposited self-assembled molecules for perovskite photovoltaics”. The team was led by Lei Ying and Ning Li from the School of Materials Science and Engineering and the State Key Laboratory of Luminescent Materials and Devices, SCUT.

Self-assembled molecular layers serve as critical ultrathin interfaces in inverted perovskite solar cells (PSCs). However, conventional solution-based methods—such as spin-coating and dip-coating—often suffer from non-uniform coverage, insufficient anchoring robustness, and limited tunability of interfacial functionalities, thereby constraining the efficiency and stability of photovoltaic devices. To overcome these limitations, the research team developed an inan electrodeposition strategy. Through potential-cycled electrodeposition, the research team induced molecular rearrangement to progressively fill undercovered regions at the interface and leveraged the deprotonation of phosphonic acid groups to enhance the bonding between the molecular layer and the ITO electrode, thereby forming a uniform, dense molecular layer with enhanced anchoring capability.

Through electrochemical oxidative coupling, this approach enables the on-demand introduction of functional groups—including cyano, pyridyl, and adamantyl—to achieve modular interfacial regulation. Based on this technique, the devices achieve power conversion efficiencies of 26.8% for lab-scale solar cells and 21.3% for solar modules (65 cm²), while exhibiting remarkably improved stability under harsh conditions (e.g., illumination, high temperature, and high humidity). Ultimately, this provides a new technological approach for the interfacial design and scalable manufacturing of highly efficient and stable perovskite photovoltaics.