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Dong et al. Energy Mater. 2026, 6, 600026 Page 13 of 16

interfacial energy structure, thereby facilitating more effective charge transport and recombination
suppression in the device. These findings indicate that rare-earth-mediated diffusion engineering represents
a viable approach for addressing key materials and interface challenges in Sb Se -based devices. More
2
3
broadly, this work provides a conceptual framework for the application of ionic diffusion control in Q1D
semiconductors and may inform future design strategies for high-performance photovoltaic devices.

DECLARATIONS
Authors’ contributions
Conducted the majority of the experiments, performed data analysis, and wrote the manuscript: Dong, X.;
Deng, W.; Zhi, Y.
Contributed to experimental fabrication and characterization: Shen, B.; Li, S.; Tang, C.
Performed first-principles calculations and theoretical analysis: Lu, M.
Assisted in experimental work and data interpretation: Jiang, S.
Contributed to experimental implementation: Qiu, J.
Performed device testing and characterization: Li, L.
Supervised the experimental work, secured funding, and contributed to writing and revising the manuscript:
Guo, H.
Assisted in experiments and contributed to manuscript revision: Yuan, N.
Supervised the project, secured funding, and contributed to manuscript revision: Ding, J.

Availability of data and materials
The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable
request.

AI and AI-assisted tools statement
Not applicable.

Financial support and sponsorship
This work was supported by Changzhou University, the National Science Foundation of China (Grant No.
62504024, 62504023, 12202078), China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (Certificate No. 2025M770524), the
Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (Grant No. BK20220624), the Changzhou Sci & Tech
Program (Grant No. CJ20241086), the Natural Science Foundation of Yangzhou (YZ2024177), and the
Yangzhou Innovation Capability Enhancement Program (YZ2022170).

Conflicts of interest
Cheng Tang is affiliated with the Technology Development Department, Avicas Generic Technology Co.,
Ltd. The other authors declared that there are no conflicts of interest.

Ethical approval and consent to participate
Not applicable.

Consent for publication
Not applicable.

Copyright
© The Author(s) 2026.

Supplementary Materials
Supplementary Materials

REFERENCES
1. Wen, X.; Chen, C.; Lu, S.; et al. Vapor transport deposition of antimony selenide thin film solar cells with 7.6% efficiency. Nat.
Commun. 2018, 9, 2179. DOI PubMed PMC