Removal of Surface Oxygen Vacancies Increases Conductance Through TiO(2) Thin Films for Perovskite Solar Cells

[Image: see text] We report that UV–ozone treatment of TiO(2) anatase thin films is an efficient method to increase the conductance through the film by more than 2 orders of magnitude. The increase in conductance is quantified via conductive scanning force microscopy on freshly annealed and UV–ozone-treated TiO(2) anatase thin films on fluorine-doped tin oxide substrates. The increased conductance of TiO(2) anatase thin films results in a 2% increase of the average power conversion efficiency (PCE) of methylammonium lead iodide-based perovskite solar cells. PCE values up to 19.5% for mesoporous solar cells are realized. The additional UV–ozone treatment results in a reduced number of oxygen vacancies at the surface, inferred from X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. These oxygen vacancies at the surface act as charge carrier traps and hinder charge extraction from the adjacent material. Terahertz measurements indicate only minor changes of the bulk conductance, which underlines the importance of UV–ozone treatment to control surface-based defects.