Vapor-Phase Grain-Boundary Anchoring Enables Molecular Toughening and Record Bending Endurance in Pilot-Scale Roll-to-Roll-Printed Flexible Perovskite Modules

Dong L, Rehm V, Qiu S, Han Z, Hemasiri NH, Wurmshuber M, Wagner M, Tavera-Méndez CL, Wisser D, Li C, Basu R, Lahn L, Kasian O, Feroze S, Heiß W, Distler A, Egelhaaf HJ, Yang F, Brabec C (2026)

Publication Type: Journal article

Publication year: 2026

Journal

Angewandte Chemie International Edition Wiley

DOI: 10.1002/anie.7292679

Abstract

Flexible lead-halide perovskite solar modules with carbon electrodes (C-fPSMs) are promising for printed photovoltaics due to their low cost and compatibility with roll-to-roll (R2R) fabrication. However, the mechanical fragility of microcrystalline perovskite films, arising from their high grain-boundary density, limits their practical application. Here, we report a vapor-phase grain-boundary anchoring strategy via thiol vapor annealing to molecularly toughen printed perovskite layers. Thiol molecules interact with intermediate species and preferentially anchor at surfaces and grain boundaries, reprogramming crystallization across the film. This chemomechanical conditioning promotes grain growth, reduces trap density, and transforms the deformation behavior from brittle fracture to ductile strain accommodation, as evidenced by reduced Young's modulus, increased yield strain, and significantly enhanced fracture toughness. As a result, treated devices retain 93% of their initial performance after 25 000 bending cycles, representing a new benchmark for flexible perovskite cells. In addition, improved film uniformity and interfacial contact enable power conversion efficiencies of 15.7% for R2R-printed cells and 12.1% for modules (20.25 cm2), with scalability demonstrated up to 900 cm2 (17.26%). This work provides a scalable strategy to simultaneously enhance mechanical robustness and photovoltaic performance.

Authors with CRIS profile

Lirong Dong Institute Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET) Viktor Rehm Institute Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET) Shudi Qiu Institute Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET) Zhao Han Sonderforschungsbereich/Transregio 89 Invasives Rechnen Michael Wurmshuber Lehrstuhl für Werkstoffwissenschaften (Allgemeine Werkstoffeigenschaften) Michael Wagner Institute Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET) Chaohui Li Institute Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET) Robin Basu Institute Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET) Olga Kasian Professur für Materialien für die elektrochemische Energiekonversion Sarmad Feroze Institute Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET) Wolfgang Heiß Professur für Werkstoffwissenschaften (lösungsprozessierte Halbleitermaterialien) Andreas Distler Institute Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET) Hans-Joachim Egelhaaf Institute Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET) Christoph Brabec Institute Materials for Electronics and Energy Technology (i-MEET)

Involved external institutions

Forschungszentrum Jülich / Research Centre Jülich (FZJ) DE Germany (DE) Soochow University, Suzhou / 苏州大学 CN China (CN)

How to cite

APA:

Dong, L., Rehm, V., Qiu, S., Han, Z., Hemasiri, N.H., Wurmshuber, M.,... Brabec, C. (2026). Vapor-Phase Grain-Boundary Anchoring Enables Molecular Toughening and Record Bending Endurance in Pilot-Scale Roll-to-Roll-Printed Flexible Perovskite Modules. Angewandte Chemie International Edition. https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.7292679

MLA:

Dong, Lirong, et al. "Vapor-Phase Grain-Boundary Anchoring Enables Molecular Toughening and Record Bending Endurance in Pilot-Scale Roll-to-Roll-Printed Flexible Perovskite Modules." Angewandte Chemie International Edition (2026).

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