Light reflecting within thin films can masquerade as molecular signals in perovskite solar materials

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A theoretical study finds that infrared features in perovskite solar-material films may result from how light reflects and transmits through layered films, rather than from changes in molecular vibrations. The finding could affect how researchers interpret measurements of light-generated charges in these materials.

An infrared signal thought to reveal how molecules in perovskite solar materials respond to light-generated charges can arise largely from the way light travels through the thin film itself, a new theoretical study shows. Jun Nishida, assistant professor at the Institute for Molecular Science (IMS), Japan, found that light-generated charges alter how infrared light is reflected and transmitted within the film layers, producing sharp features that resemble changes in molecular vibrations even when the vibrations themselves are unaltered.