| 1. |
- Keeble, D. J., et al.
(author)
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Identification of lead vacancy defects in lead halide perovskites
- 2021
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In: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723 .- 2041-1723. ; 12:1
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Perovskite photovoltaics advance rapidly, but questions remain regarding point defects: while experiments have detected the presence of electrically active defects no experimentally confirmed microscopic identifications have been reported. Here we identify lead monovacancy (VPb) defects in MAPbI3 (MA = CH3NH3+) using positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy with the aid of density functional theory. Experiments on thin film and single crystal samples all exhibited dominant positron trapping to lead vacancy defects, and a minimum defect density of ~3 × 1015 cm−3 was determined. There was also evidence of trapping at the vacancy complex (VPbVI)− in a minority of samples, but no trapping to MA-ion vacancies was observed. Our experimental results support the predictions of other first-principles studies that deep level, hole trapping, VPb2−, point defects are one of the most stable defects in MAPbI3. This direct detection and identification of a deep level native defect in a halide perovskite, at technologically relevant concentrations, will enable further investigation of defect driven mechanisms.
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| 2. |
- Yang, Qigui, et al.
(author)
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A combined experimental and theoretical study of small and large vacancy clusters in tungsten
- 2022
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In: Journal of Nuclear Materials. - : Elsevier BV. - 0022-3115 .- 1873-4820. ; 571
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Tungsten is considered to be used in the future fusion reactors as plasma-facing material. In such ex- treme environments, defects are induced in materials that modify their macroscopic properties such as the mechanical ones. It is of paramount importance to be able to determine concentration and size of the vacancy defects, from the mono vacancy to the large cavities, to validate the models developed to predict the evolution of the microstructure of irradiated materials. Positrons are very useful non-destructive probes that can characterize vacancy-type defects in materials. We present a combined ex- perimental and theoretical study on detecting and estimating the sizes of vacancy clusters that are invis- ible with electron microscopy in tungsten, using positron annihilation spectroscopy. We here model the positron annihilation in the tungsten lattice and in vacancy-type defects using state-of-the-art first prin- ciples methodology. The Doppler broadening spectra and positron lifetimes in tungsten are calculated with two-component density functional theory with local density approximation and weighted density approximation. Our calculations are in excellent agreement with our experimental results. We show that the sizes of vacancy clusters in tungsten can be well estimated by combining both positron lifetimes and Doppler broadening spectra. We also determine the limit of validity of the canonical calculation method, which here is shown to fail when the vacancy clusters grow beyond their nucleation stage. This work is a first step needed to better interpret the measured positron annihilation characteristics (Doppler and lifetime) in tungsten and then extract quantitative data on small vacancy defects required to improve the understanding of early-stage vacancy defect evolution in tungsten. The method used in this paper could be used to study other metallic materials.
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