Metal halide perovskites (MHPs) with striking electrical and optical properties have appeared at the forefront of semiconductor materials for photocatalytic redox reactions but still suffer from some intrinsic drawbacks such as inferior stability, severe charge-carrier recombination, and limited active sites. Heterojunctions have recently been widely constructed to improve light absorption, passivate surface for enhanced stability, and promote charge-carrier dynamics of MHPs. However, little attention has been paid to the review of MHPs-based heterojunctions for photocatalytic redox reactions. Here, recent advances of MHPs-based heterojunctions for photocatalytic redox reactions are highlighted. The structure, synthesis, and photophysical properties of MHPs-based heterojunctions are first introduced, including basic principles, categories (such as Schottky junction, type-I, type-II, Z-scheme, and S-scheme junction), and synthesis strategies. MHPs-based heterojunctions for photocatalytic redox reactions are then reviewed in four categories: H₂ evolution, CO₂ reduction, pollutant degradation, and organic synthesis. The challenges and prospects in solar-light-driven redox reactions with MHPs-based heterojunctions in the future are finally discussed.

Bismuth-based perovskite derivatives, (CH₃NH₃)₃Bi₂I₉ (MBI), are promising non-toxic light-absorbing materials widely used in various photoelectric devices because of their excellent stability. However, MBI-based perovskite solar cells (PSCs) are limited by poor film quality, and the performance of such a device is far behind that of lead-based PSCs. In this work, the crystal structure and morphological properties of MBI films were compared across different preparation methods. The two-step vapor-assisted method can prepare continuous dense MBI films because MBI crystal nucleation is induced by the BiI₃ seed layer. The MBI film grown by this method is better for the production of excellent PSCs compared to the film prepared by the solution method. The best photovoltaic device based on the MBI film could obtain a power conversion efficiency of 1.13%. An MBI device is stored in the glove box for 60 days, and the device’s performance is maintained at 99%. These results indicate that the vapor-assisted deposition of MBI films can be an effective method to improve the performance of bismuth-based planar PSCs.

Integrating high-throughput DFT and ML, we screen 2D Janus t-TMXY monolayers, identifying dynamically stable candidates: ligand asymmetry tunes transport properties. These show superior thermoelectric performance, with energy conversion potential.

Enhancing the stability of oxygen evolution reaction (OER) catalysts is a critical challenge for realizing efficient water splitting. In this work, we introduce an innovative approach by applying an electric field during the annealing of a CoFe₂O₄/C catalyst. By controlling the electric field strength (100 mV) and treatment duration (1 h), we achieved dual optimization of the catalyst’s microstructure and electronic environment, resulting in a significant improvement in catalytic stability. The experimental results demonstrate that the electric field-treated catalyst exhibits a reduced overpotential decay (only 0.8 mV) and enhanced stability (retaining 89.1% of its initial activity after 24 h) during extended OER testing. This performance significantly surpasses that of the untreated sample, which showed an overpotential decay of 1.5 mV and retained only 72.5% of its activity after 24 h. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis confirmed that the electric field treatment promoted the formation of oxygen vacancies, substantially improved electron transfer efficiency, and optimized the local electronic environment of Co²⁺/Co³⁺ and Fe²⁺/Fe³⁺, leading to a decrease in charge transfer resistance (Rct) from 58.2 Ω to 42.9 Ω. This study not only presents a novel strategy for modulating catalyst stability via electric fields but also broadens the design concepts for OER catalytic materials by establishing a structure–activity relationship between electric field strength, microstructure, and catalytic performance, ultimately providing a theoretical foundation and experimental guidance for the development of highly efficient and stable water splitting catalysts.

Lead halide perovskite solar cells (PSCs) have shown tremendous progress in the last few years. However, highly toxic Pb and its instability have restricted their further development. On the other hand, antimony-based perovskites such as cesium antimony iodide (Cs₃Sb₂I₉) have shown high stability but low power conversion efficiency (PCE) due to the limited transfer of photocarriers and the poor quality of films. Here, we present a novel method to improve the performance of Cs₃Sb₂I₉ PSCs through a FACl-modified buried interface. FACl acts as a bi-functional additive, and FA incorporation enhances the crystallinity and light absorption of films. Furthermore, treatment with FACl optimizes the level position of Cs₃Sb₂I₉. In addition, transient photovoltage and transient photocurrent were employed to confirm the reduction of charge recombination and superior carrier transportation. By using a planar device structure, we found the PCE of a FACl–Cs₃Sb₂I₉-based device to be 1.66%. The device, stored for 2 months under N₂ conditions, showed a negligible loss in PCE. Overall, this study provides a new strategy to further enhance the performance of Sb-based PSCs.