Comparing Halide Ligands in PbS Colloidal Quantum Dots for Field-Effect Transistors and Solar Cells

Capping colloidal quantum dots (CQDs) with atomic ligands is a powerful approach to tune their properties and improve the charge carrier transport in CQD solids. Efficient passivation of the CQD surface, which can be achieved with halide ligands, is crucial for application in optoelectronic devices. Heavier halides, i.e., I- and Br-, have been thoroughly studied as capping ligands in the last years, but passivation with fluoride ions has not received sufficient consideration. In this work, effective coating of PbS CQDs with fluoride ligands is demonstrated and compared to the results obtained with other halides. The electron mobility in field-effect transistors of PbS CQDs treated with different halides shows an increase with the size of the atomic ligand (from 3.9 × 10-4 cm2/(V s) for fluoride-treated to 2.1 × 10-2 cm2/(V s) for iodide-treated), whereas the hole mobility remains unchanged in the range between 1 × 10-5 cm2/(V s) and 10-4cm2/(V s). This leads to a relatively more pronounced p-type behavior of the fluoride- and chloride-treated films compared to the iodide-treated ones. Cl-- and F--capped PbS CQDs solids were then implemented as p-type layer in solar cells; these devices showed similar performance to those prepared with 1,2-ethanedithiol in the same function. The relatively stronger p-type character of the fluoride- and chloride-treated PbS CQD films broadens the utility of such materials in optoelectronic devices.