Sputtered molybdenum thin films and the application in CIGS solar cells

Zhou, Dong; Zhu, Hongbing; Liang, Xiaoyang; Zhang, C.; Li, Z.; Xu, Ying; Chen, J.; Zhang, L.; Mai, Yaohua

doi:10.1016/j.apsusc.2015.11.235

Cited by 56 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…21 The 0.55 μm thick Mo was deposited on the soda lime glass substrate using dc magnetron sputtering. 22 On top of the In 2 S 3 buffer layer, intrinsic ZnO and ZnO:Al were deposited with the same sputter setup using the secondary and tertiary cathodes of the sputter unit. i-ZnO was sputtered at 3 × 10 −3 mbar sputter pressure and at 2.5 W/cm 2 sputter power while ZnO:Al (AZO) was sputtered at 5 × 10 −3 mbar sputter pressure and at 3.2 W/cm 2 sputter power.…”

Section: Sample Preparationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sputtering as a viable route for In₂S₃ buffer layer deposition in high efficiency Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ solar cells

Soni

Raghuwanshi

Wuerz

et al. 2019

Energy Science & Engineering

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Alternative buffer layers in CIGSe are deposited mainly using chemical bath deposition because of its benefits like simplicity, good film quality and surface/step coverage. All the layers in CIGSe cell stack such as back contact, absorber and window layers are deposited by vacuum-deposition methods such as coevaporation, sputtering, and sometimes thermal evaporation, except for the buffer layer. Therefore, in the present work we demonstrate the feasibility to deposit In 2 S 3 by RF magnetron sputtering reaching cell efficiencies of 13.6%, which is the highest value available for sputtered In 2 S 3 in literature to date. Absorber surface damage and nonuniform buffer layer thickness are the primary limitations when using sputtering, and hence need to be eliminated for reaching reasonable cell efficiencies. We studied the extent of sputter induced damage on CIGSe absorber as well as the sputtering-and annealing-induced intermixing phenomenon at the In 2 S 3 /Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 interface at the subnanometer level using atom probe tomography. We have also shown that a post deposition annealing not only significantly improves the crystallinity of In 2 S 3 , but also recovers the surface damage caused by sputter-induced intermixing resulting in an improved p-n Junction quality (as shown by the electron beam induced current investigations), and substantially improves cell efficiency. The present work opens a new way for designing efficient and industry-compatible CIGSe cells using sputter-deposited Cdfree buffer layers. Moreover, this work clearly demonstrates that this novel and fully vacuum-deposited CIGSe cell meets the standard requirements, in terms of chemistry, structure, and electrical performance of a working cell for the PV industry.

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Section: Sample Preparationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sputtering as a viable route for In₂S₃ buffer layer deposition in high efficiency Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ solar cells

Soni

Raghuwanshi

Wuerz

et al. 2019

Energy Science & Engineering

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“…Nevertheless, it has been realized for a long time that Mo layer acts as a transport gate for alkali elements from SLG, 36,37 in addition to its role for adhesion and conduction. 38,39 To satisfy the simultaneous requirements for adhesion and conduction, double layered Mo back contact on SLG with a porous bottom layer and a dense top layer is often fabricated as the solution. However, there is no systematic and explicit exploration up to now on the control of alkali atom diffusion though designing Mo back contact with projected microstructures.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Role of surface microstructure of Mo back contact on alkali atom diffusion and Ga grading in Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ thin film solar cells

Gong

Kong

et al. 2019

Energy Science & Engineering

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While the major function of molybdenum (Mo) back contact on soda‐lime glass (SLG) substrate in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells is to provide good adhesion and good conductivity, its role as the transportation channel for alkali elements from SLG substrate to CIGS layer has often been overlooked. In this work, we have intentionally fabricated tri‐layered structure in contrast to the conventional bi‐layered structure for Mo back contact with the microstructure of the thin topmost Mo layer manipulated by the Ar pressure and water vapor during sputtering deposition. It has been discovered that the CIGS solar cell conversion efficiency can be greatly affected by this thin topmost Mo layer of the back contact. Investigations on the elemental depth profiles in the CIGS devices and the chemical states of Mo on the back contact surfaces have revealed that the surface layer of Mo back contact has a strong effect on the diffusion of alkali elements from SLG into CIGS absorber layer, which in turn influences the formation of Ga gradient in the CIGS layer and thus the solar cell performance. It was revealed that Mo(OH)6 and MoO3 formed on the surface of Mo back contact play a key role in determining the K atom distribution and Ga gradient. A reaction mechanism was also proposed.

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“…In recent years, several thin-film absorbers such as III–V compound material (GaInP/GaAs) [1,2,3], I–III–VI compound material (Cu(In, Ga)Se 2 , CIGS) [4,5,6], and I–II–VI compound material (Cu 2 ZnSnS 4 , CZTS) [7,8,9] have been investigated for semiconductor thin-film solar cells. Among these studied materials, direct band gap chalcopyrite-structured CIGS and kesterite-structured CZTS are potential absorber materials for the next generation of thin-film solar cells because of their large optical absorption coefficients over the visual light range.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Copper-Zinc-Tin-Sulfur Thin Film Using Spin-Coating Technology

et al. 2016

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Cu 2 ZnSnS 4 (CZTS) thin films were deposited on glass substrates by using spin-coating and an annealing process, which can improve the crystallinity and morphology of the thin films. The grain size, optical gap, and atomic contents of copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), tin (Sn), and sulfur (S) in a CZTS thin film absorber relate to the concentrations of aqueous precursor solutions containing copper chloride (CuCl 2 ), zinc chloride (ZnCl 2 ), tin chloride (SnCl 2 ), and thiourea (SC(NH 2 ) 2 ), whereas the electrical properties of CZTS thin films depend on the annealing temperature and the atomic content ratios of Cu/(Zn + Sn) and Zn/Sn. All of the CZTS films were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDXS), Raman spectroscopy, and Hall measurements. Furthermore, CZTS thin film was deposited on an n-type silicon substrate by using spin-coating to form an Mo/p-CZTS/n-Si/Al heterostructured solar cell. The p-CZTS/n-Si heterostructured solar cell showed a conversion efficiency of 1.13% with V oc = 520 mV, J sc = 3.28 mA/cm 2 , and fill-factor (FF) = 66%.

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Sputtered molybdenum thin films and the application in CIGS solar cells

Cited by 56 publications

References 18 publications

Sputtering as a viable route for In₂S₃ buffer layer deposition in high efficiency Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ solar cells

Sputtering as a viable route for In₂S₃ buffer layer deposition in high efficiency Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ solar cells

Role of surface microstructure of Mo back contact on alkali atom diffusion and Ga grading in Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ thin film solar cells

Copper-Zinc-Tin-Sulfur Thin Film Using Spin-Coating Technology

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Sputtered molybdenum thin films and the application in CIGS solar cells

Cited by 56 publications

References 18 publications

Sputtering as a viable route for In2S3 buffer layer deposition in high efficiency Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells

Sputtering as a viable route for In2S3 buffer layer deposition in high efficiency Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells

Role of surface microstructure of Mo back contact on alkali atom diffusion and Ga grading in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin film solar cells

Copper-Zinc-Tin-Sulfur Thin Film Using Spin-Coating Technology

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Sputtering as a viable route for In₂S₃ buffer layer deposition in high efficiency Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ solar cells

Sputtering as a viable route for In₂S₃ buffer layer deposition in high efficiency Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ solar cells

Role of surface microstructure of Mo back contact on alkali atom diffusion and Ga grading in Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ thin film solar cells