Zero-dipole molecular organic cations in mixed organic–inorganic halide perovskites: possible chemical solution for the reported anomalous hysteresis in the current–voltage curve measurements

Starting from a brief description of the main architectures characterizing the novel solar technology of perovskite-based solar cells, we focus our attention on the anomalous hysteresis experimentally found to affect the measurement of the current-voltage curve of such devices. This detrimental effect, associated with slow dynamic reorganization processes, depends on several parameters; among them, the scan rate of the measurements, the architecture of the cell, and the perovskite deposition rate are crucial. Even if a conclusive explanation of the origin of the hysteresis has not been provided so far, several experimental findings ascribe its origin to ionic migration at an applied bias and dielectric polarization that occurs in the perovskite layer. Consistently, a dipole-moment-reduced cation such as formamidinium ion is experimentally reported to quantitatively reduce the hysteresis from perovskite-based devices. By means of a density-functional theory-based set of calculations, we have predicted and characterized guanidinium ion (GA = (+)[C(NH2)3], a zero-dipole moment cation by symmetry)-based organic-inorganic halide perovskite's structural and electronic properties, speculating that such a cation and the alloys it may form with other organic cations can represent a possible chemical solution for the puzzling issue of the hysteresis.