A Layered Solution Crystal Growth Technique and the Crystal Structure of (C6H5C2H4NH3)2PbCl4

Abstract Single crystals of the organic–inorganic perovskite (C6H5C2H4NH3)2PbCl4 have been grown at room temperature using a layered solution approach. The bottom solution layer, contained within a long straight tube, consists of PbCl2 dissolved in concentrated aqueous HCl. A less dense layer of methanol is carefully placed on top of the HCl/PbCl2 solution using a syringe. Finally, a stoichiometric quantity of C6H5C2H4NH2 (relative to the PbCl2) is added to the top of the column. As the layers slowly diffuse together, well-formed crystals of (C6H5C2H4NH3)2PbCl4 appear near the interface between the HCl/PbCl2 and C6H5C2H4NH2 solutions. The thick, plate-like crystals are well suited for X-ray crystallography studies. Room temperature intensity data were refined using a triclinic (P 1 ) cell (a=11.1463(3) A, b=11.2181(3) A, c=17.6966(5) A, α= 99.173(1)°, β=104.634(1)°, γ=89.999(1)°, V=2111.8(1) A3, Z=4, Rf/Rw=0.031/0.044). The organic–inorganic layered perovskite structure features well-ordered sheets of corner-sharing distorted PbCl6 octahedra separated by bilayers of phenethylammonium cations. Tilting and rotation of the PbCl6 octahedra within the perovskite sheets, coupled with organic cation ordering, leads to the unusual in-sheet 2ap×2ap superstructure, where ap is the lattice constant for the ideal cubic perovskite.