How Does the Number of Methoxy Groups Change the Interface? SAM Design Revealed Through an Industry–Academia Collaboration with NIMS

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This is a sponsored post by KYOCERA Document Solutions Inc. The performance of perovskite solar cells is not determined by the material itself alone. How we engineer the "buried interface" between the electrode and the perovskite at the molecular level can make a decisive difference—one that directly impacts charge extraction, reproducibility, and ultimately stability. Kyocera Document Solutions and the National Institute for Materials Science (NIMS) focused on the "number" and "arrangement" of methoxy groups introduced into self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). By elucidating how differences in molecular design—namely C21 versus C22—affect everything from work-function control to defect density, film formation, and device performance, the team presented design guidelines for SAMs in inverted (p–i–n) perovskite solar cells (PSCs). The study, which focuses on methoxy-functionalized conjugated SAMs as hole-selective contacts, has been published in the international scientific journal ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces ( DOI: 10.1021/acsami.6c04007 ).