Toward Understanding the Current Drift Using Pulsed Voltage for a Stable Perovskite X-ray Detector

Metal halide perovskite single crystals (SCs) have demonstrated significant potential for X-ray detection. However, the current drift of perovskite detectors has been the primary obstacle for commercialization. Here, we investigate the current drift of perovskite devices using the pulsed voltage (PV) method and establish stable PV radiation detectors based on MAPbBr3 SC. The trend of current drift is identified to be dependent on waiting time with the negligible disturbance of carriers in PV measurements, which is influenced by the competition effect between ionic polarization and defect proliferation. Furthermore, an aluminum-bathocuproine (Al-BCP) chelating electrode is used to shorten the waiting time, which is vital for the practicability of X-ray detectors based on the PV method. The synergistic effect of the PV method and chelating interface in MAPbBr3 SC detectors exhibits double records under 100 V, including a sensitivity of 1.13 × 105 μC Gyair–1 cm–2 and a detection limit of 0.7 nGyair s–1. The photon-generated carriers under continuous illumination fill defects, resulting in an obvious photoconductive gain generation. This work enhances further understanding of current drift in perovskite devices and shows the tremendous application potential of perovskite X-ray detectors.