Chalcogenide perovskite thin films with controlled phases for optoelectronics

Chalcogenide perovskites have emerged as promising semiconductor materials due to their appealing properties, including tunable bandgaps, high absorption coefficients, reasonable carrier lifetimes and mobilities, excellent chemical stability, and environmentally benign nature. However, beyond the well-studied BaZrS${}_3$, reports on chalcogenide perovskite thin films with diverse compositions are scarce. In this study, the realization of four different types of chalcogenide perovskite thin films with controlled phases, through CS${}_2$ annealing of amorphous chalcogenide precursor films deposited by pulsed laser deposition (PLD), is reported. This achievement is guided by a thorough theoretical investigation of the phase stability of chalcogenide perovskites. Upon crystallization in the distorted perovskite phase, all materials exhibit photoluminescence (PL) with peak positions in the visible range, consistent with their expected bandgap values. However, the full-width-at-half-maximum (FWHM) of the PL spectra varies significantly across these materials, ranging from 99 meV for SrHfS${}_3$ to 231 meV for BaHfS${}_3$. The difference is attributed to the difference in kinetic barriers between local structural motifs for the Sr and Ba compounds. The findings underscore the promise of chalcogenide perovskite thin films as an alternative to traditional halide perovskites for optoelectronic applications, while highlighting the challenges in optimizing their synthesis and performance. (© 2023 Wiley‐VCH GmbH)