Dynamic Calibration of Injection-Dependent Carrier Lifetime From Time-Resolved Photoluminescence of Thin-Film Photovoltaic Semiconductors

Time-resolved photoluminescence is widely used to measure the charge carrier lifetime of thin film semiconductor materials. Nevertheless, the essential injection dependency of the carrier lifetime, which is hidden in these measurements, is often neglected. In this study, a novel dynamic calibration method is proposed to extract injection-dependent carrier lifetime from time-resolved photoluminescence measurements. The proposed method is based on the combination of transient and steady-state measurements. The measured relative photoluminescence signal is converted into excess carrier concentration; thus, the injection dependency of the carrier lifetime can be extracted. The method is demonstrated experimentally using a perovskite thin film. The obtained injection-dependent lifetime can be used to investigate the recombination mechanisms within the sample and to predict the potential current–voltage curve of solar cells made from the film. The proposed method significantly expands the capability of time-resolved photoluminescence and provides numerous applications for a wide range of emerging photovoltaic materials.