Analysis of Si Back‐Contact for Chalcogenide Perovskite Solar Cells Based on BaZrS₃ Using SCAPS‐1D

Abstract

Barium zirconium sulfide (BaZrS3), a chalcogenide perovskite, is attracting a lot of attention for thin‐film photovoltaic (PV) application. Unlike the lead halide perovskites, it is stable and does not contain toxic elements. Herein, PV devices incorporating barium zirconium sulfide (BZS) are investigated numerically as a photoabsorber with a back‐contact layer of both crystalline and amorphous p+ type silicon, using a Solar Cell Capacitance Simulator software‐1D. The titanium (Ti) alloyed BZS, which has an electron‐energy bandgap close to optimum for a single junction PV device, is also investigated. A systematic study is carried out by varying the thickness, doping density, and defect density in the BZS layer. Among the two phases of Si, the amorphous one results in higher photoconversion efficiency (PCE) due to a favorable energy band alignment with BZS. The corresponding best PCEs predicted from the study are 19.7% for BZS films and 30% for Ba(Zr0.95Ti0.05)S3 films with the amorphous Si as back‐contact.

Emerging BaZrS3 and Ba(Zr,Ti)S3 Chalcogenide Perovskite Solar Cells: A Numerical Approach Toward Device Engineering and Unlocking Efficiency

“…On the other hand, when the R Sh is increased from 10 to 10 7 Ω cm 2 , an increase in FF and PCE from 25 to 84.94% and 2.60 to 32.58% is observed. Therefore, with higher values of R Sh , the device shows improved performance. , …”

“…Yet, it is noteworthy that the PCE dropped by just 0.8%, underscoring the stability of Ba(Zr,Ti) S 3 compared with lead halide perovskites. Therefore, these findings highlight the potential of Ba(Zr,Ti) S 3 as a stable PV device. , …”

“…Therefore, with higher values of R Sh , the device shows improved performance. 37,47 The impact of temperature has been investigated by varying it from 300 to 400 K. Figure 11e,f illustrates the changes in the PV parameters as a function of temperature. The J sc and V oc remain unaltered throughout the entire range, whereas the FF and PCE experience a slight decrease from 84.94 to 82.95% and 32.58 to 31.79%, respectively.…”

“…33 Among them, BaZrS 3 is considered to be ideal from the standpoint of the direct band gap of 1.7 eV, 34 high absorption coefficient >10 5 cm −1 at photon energy larger than 1.97 eV (<700 nm), 35 elevated carrier mobility of 30 cm 2 /(V s) with p-type conductivity, 36 and exceptional stability toward moisture, light, and temperature. 37 Prior research indicates that the performance of BaZrS 3 can be improved further by alloying with both titanium (Ti) and selenium (Se). So far, Ti alloying has proven to be more productive due to its effective band gap reduction with less atom %.…”

“…46 Researchers recently employed BaZrS 3 and Ba(Zr,Ti)S 3 as absorbers in thin-film devices and studied their influence using SCAPS-1D. 37,47,48 However, a comprehensive study on the device engineering and properties of BaZrS 3 and Ba(Zr,Ti)S 3 is scarce, creating more room to discover and understand the potential of these absorbers in thin-film devices. Also, choosing the right electron transport layers (ETLs) and HTLs is crucial in creating efficient devices.…”