Evaluation of AA-CVD deposited phase pure polymorphs of SnS for thin films solar cells

Ahmet, Ibbi Y.; Guc, Maxim; Sánchez, Yudania; Neuschitzer, Markus; Izquierdo‐Roca, Víctor; Saucedo, Edgardo; Johnson, Andrew L.

doi:10.1039/c9ra01938c

Cited by 55 publications

(37 citation statements)

References 64 publications

(111 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…For π-SnS, the influence of the metal back contact has been much less researched. Recently, Ahmet et al compared Mo, SnO 2 :F (FTO), and FTO with a 20 nm-thick amorphous TiO x layer (a-TiO x /FTO) to this end . SnS produced by aerosol-assisted chemical vapor deposition on the bare FTO contact showed higher voltage (144 mV) than those with Mo (135 mV) or a-TiO x /FTO back contacts (85 and 133 mV for α- and π-SnS, respectively).…”

Section: Results and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…More generally, thin-film photovoltaics based on SnS is intensely researched, as SnS is considered a promising, earth abundant, and nontoxic alternative to the more established CdTe, CuInSe 2 , or Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se) 2 (CIGS) thin-film solar cell absorbers. − Owing to the high absorption coefficient and near-optimal bandgap in the range of 1.1–1.3 eV for the orthorhombic phase SnS (α-SnS), , a high efficiency may in theory be approached . Recent studies have established that SnS may also crystalize in a cubic polymorph (π-SnS), − characterized by a wider bandgap of 1.6–1.8 eV. , This is a near perfect match for an inorganic top cell in tandem with a silicon bottom cell, or indeed, with an α-SnS-based bottom cell. , …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Ultrathin Solar Cells Based on Atomic Layer Deposition of Cubic versus Orthorhombic Tin Monosulfide

Voznyi

Bilousov

Landeke-Wilsmark

et al. 2021

ACS Appl. Energy Mater.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Tin monosulfide can be grown in cubic (π-SnS) and orthorhombic (α-SnS) polymorphs by low-temperature atomic layer deposition (ALD). The optical properties of these polymorphs make them attractive for the realization of plasmonic solar cells with ultrathin absorber layers down to 10 nm in thickness. SnS is also an earth-abundant and nontoxic compound semiconductor of high interest for regular thin-film photovoltaics. To better understand the behavior of the two SnS polymorphs in ultrathin solar cell configurations, we here fabricate, characterize, and analyze a range of such devices. ALD is used to grow SnS and form heterojunctions with zinc oxysulfide [Zn(O,S)], acting as a buffer layer with a composition-tunable bandgap. Apart from the roles of the SnS polymorph and Zn(O,S) composition, the effects of the back contact material and thicknesses of buffer and absorber layers are investigated. Devices using π-SnS and pure ZnO buffers yield the highest photocurrents (3.1 mA/cm2) and higher open circuit voltage (159 mV) than similar α-SnS-based devices. Analysis of the equivalent-circuit parameters suggests that interface recombination limits the voltage for these devices. While Zn(O,S) with a higher sulfur content provides chemical passivation of the SnS interface and excessive open circuit voltages above 600 mV, it also exhibits a too high conduction band offset, which hampers current collection. A growth delay during the ALD of Zn(O,S) on SnS initially amplifies the known sulfur–oxygen exchange reaction, such that a sulfur-rich Zn(O,S) region forms next to the SnS interface. This causes a thin ZnS-like barrier to form already for low cycle fractions of the H2S precursor in the ALD super-cycle. Voltage and fill factor trends suggest an optimal SnS absorber layer thickness in the range of 15–35 nm, presenting an opportunity for plasmonic absorption enhancement. Devices with π-SnS show most promise, but interface recombination versus current-blocking is a dilemma for the SnS/Zn(O,S) heterojunction.

show abstract

Section: Results and Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ultrathin Solar Cells Based on Atomic Layer Deposition of Cubic versus Orthorhombic Tin Monosulfide

Voznyi

Bilousov

Landeke-Wilsmark

et al. 2021

ACS Appl. Energy Mater.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…39-0354). The well-matched diffraction peaks confirm the presence of α-SnS without any secondary phases of SnS 2 or Sn 2 S 3 and is in accordance with previous reports. ,, The SnS absorber deposited at a temperature ramping rate of 5 °C min –1 displays preferential orientation along the (111) crystal direction. As the temperature ramping rate increases to 20 °C min –1 , the relative intensity of the (120) reflection increases gradually, and the SnS absorber exhibits both (120) and (111) preferred orientations.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of the Temperature Ramping Rate on the Performance of Vapor Transport Deposited SnS Thin-Film Solar Cells

Lee

Cho

Nandi

et al. 2020

ACS Appl. Energy Mater.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The effect of the temperature ramping rate of vapor transport deposition (VTD) on the morphology, crystallinity, and orientation of SnSabsorber layers and their impact on SnS/CdS heterojunction thin-film solar cells (TFSCs) has been investigated. The SnS-absorber layers were deposited on SLG/ Mo by using the VTD process at an evaporation temperature of 600 °C achieved by different temperature ramping rates ranging from 5 to 20 °C min −1 . The SnSabsorber layers deposited at a low temperature ramping rate of 5 °C min −1 displayed a nonuniform size distribution of crystallites with a (111) preferred orientation. An increase in the temperature ramping rate to 20 °C min −1 led to a densely packed morphology with pronounced (120)-oriented films and a more uniformly distributed grains. Furthermore, this improvement in the morphology and orientation of SnS absorbers resulted in a pronounced improvement in the diode characteristics of the heterojunction TFSC with device configuration of SLG/Mo/SnS/CdS/i-ZnO/Al-doped ZnO/Al, as revealed by current density−voltage analysis conducted under dark conditions. Consequently, the power conversion efficiency of the solar cells (active area = 0.3 cm 2 ) was increased to 3.98% together with an open-circuit voltage of 0.34 V, short-circuit current density of 20.16 mA cm −2 , and fill factor of 0.58 for the TFSC fabricated with the SnS-absorber layers deposited at an elevated temperature ramping rate of 20 °C min −1 compared with 2.45% for the absorber layer deposited at a ramping rate of 5 °C min −1 . The enhanced device performance was essentially attributed to the remarkably improved fill factor arising from the improved shunt properties of the SnS absorber.

show abstract

“…SnS can be deposited through easy vacuum and non-vacuum based techniques like spray pyrolysis [ 4 ], spin coating [ 5 ], dip coating [ 6 ], sputtering [ 7 ], thermal evaporation [ 8 ], chemical vapor deposition [ 9 ] etc.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Numerical Modeling and Performance Evaluation of SnS Based Heterojunction Solar Cell with p+ SnS BSF Layer

Bhattacharjee

Garain

Basak

et al. 2022

Preprint

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In this research article, the performance of the solar cell having the structure (Ag/ZnO:Al/CdS/SnS/p+-SnS/Mo/Glass) is investigated in detail using SCAPS-1D software. The main motive of this work was to study the performance parameters of SnS based solar cell having p+-SnS layer as Back Surface Field (BSF). It is found that with the addition of p+-SnS BSF layer and after performing all the optimization of the different parameters, the efficiency (η) of the solar cell improved and enhanced to 7.11%. The open circuit voltage (Voc) and the short circuit current (Jsc) of the designed solar cell enhanced up to 359 mV and 27 mA/cm2 after adding p+-SnS BSF layer. It is observed that the performance of the heterojunction solar cell is dependent on several factors like thickness of the buffer, absorber and the BSF layer, carrier concentration, defect density, series and shunt resistance of the device. Also fabricating a p+-SnS layer is of low cost and the lattice mismatch is less with the SnS layer. All these findings reveal that p+-SnS layer could be a promising BSF layer to enhance the performance of SnS based heterojunction solar cell.

show abstract

Evaluation of AA-CVD deposited phase pure polymorphs of SnS for thin films solar cells

Abstract: Polymorph selective deposition of α- and π-SnS enables their evaluation as thin film PV absorber layers in various device structures.

Cited by 55 publications

References 64 publications

Ultrathin Solar Cells Based on Atomic Layer Deposition of Cubic versus Orthorhombic Tin Monosulfide

Ultrathin Solar Cells Based on Atomic Layer Deposition of Cubic versus Orthorhombic Tin Monosulfide

Influence of the Temperature Ramping Rate on the Performance of Vapor Transport Deposited SnS Thin-Film Solar Cells

Numerical Modeling and Performance Evaluation of SnS Based Heterojunction Solar Cell with p+ SnS BSF Layer

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About