• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.69-72
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• 2014

We investigated current-voltage (I-V) and capacitance (C)-V characteristics of solution-processed thin film solar cells, consisting of $Cu(In,Ga)S_2$ and $CuInS_2$ stacked absorber layers. The ideality factors, extracted from the temperature-dependent I-V curves, showed that the tunneling-mediated interface recombination was dominant in the cells. Rapid increase of both series- and shunt-resistance at low temperatures would limit the performance of the cells, requiring further optimization. The C-V data revealed that the carrier concentration of the $CuInS_2$ layer was about 10 times larger than that of the $Cu(In,Ga)S_2$ layer. All these results could help us to find strategies to improve the efficiency of the solution-processed thin film solar cells.

• Proceedings of the Materials Research Society of Korea Conference
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• 2012.05a
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• pp.98.2-98.2
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• 2012

Thin film solar cells are growing up in the market due to their high efficiency and low cost. Especially CdTe and $CuInGaSe_2$ based solar cells are leading the other cells, but due to the limited percentage of the elements present in our earth's crust like Tellurium, Indium and Gallium, the price of the solar cells will increase rapidly. Copper Zinc Tin Sulfide (CZTS) and Copper Zinc Tin Selenide (CZTSe) semiconductor (having a kesterite crystal structure) are getting attention for its solar cell application as the absorber layer. CZTS and CZTSe have almost the same crystal structure with more environmentally friendly elements. Various authors have reported growth and characterization of CZTSe films and solar cells with efficiencies about 3.2% to 8.9%. In this study, a novel method to prepare CZTSe has been proposed based on selenization of stacked Copper Selenide ($Cu_2Se$), Tin Selenide ($SnSe_2$) and Zinc Selenide (Zinc Selenide) in six possible stacking combinations. Depositions were carried out through RF magnetron sputtering. Selenization of all the samples was performed in Close Space Sublimation (CSS) in vacuum at different temperatures for three minutes. Characterization of each sample has been performed in Field Emission SEM, XRD, Raman spectroscopy, EDS and Auger. In this study, the properties and results of $Cu_2ZnSnSe_4$ thin films grown by selenization will be presented.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2010.06a
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• pp.98.2-98.2
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• 2010

$CuInS_2$ thin films were synthesized by sulfurization of Cu/In Stacked elemental layer deposited onto glass Substrates by vacuum furnace annealing at temperature 200[$^{\circ}C$]. And structural and electrical properties were measured in order to certify optimum conditions for growth of the ternary compound semiconductor $CuInS_2$ thin films with non-stoichiometry composition. $CuInS_2$ thin film was well made at the heat treatment 200[$^{\circ}C$] of SLG/Cu/In/S stacked elemental layer which was prepared by thermal evaporator, and chemical composition of the thin film was analyzed nearly as the proportion of 1 : 1 : 2. Physical properties of the thin film were investigated at various fabrication conditions substrate temperature, annealing and temperature, annealing time by XRD, FE-SEM and hall measurement system. At the same time, carrier concentration, hall mobility and resistivity of the thin films was $9.10568{\times}10^{17}$ [$cm^{-3}$], 312.502 [$cm^2/V{\cdot}s$] and $2.36{\times}10^{-2}$ [${\Omega}{\cdot}cm$], respectively.

• 한국신재생에너지학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2011.05a
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• pp.106.1-106.1
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• 2011

The Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) thin film solar cells have been achieved until almost 20% efficiency by NREL. These solar cells include chemically deposited CdS as buffer layer between CIGS absorber layer and ZnO window layer. Although CIGS solar cells with CdS buffer layer show excellent performance, the short wavelength response of CIGS solar cell is limited by narrow CdS band gap of about 2.42 eV. Taking into consideration the environmental aspect, the toxic Cd element should be replaced by a different material. Among Cd-free candidate materials, the CIGS thin film solar cells with ZnS buffer layer seem to be promising with 17.2%(module by showa shell K.K.), 18.6%(small area by NREL). However, ZnS/CIGS solar cells still show lower performance than CdS/CIGS solar cells. There are several reported reasons to reduce the efficiency of ZnS/CIGS solar cells. Nakada reported ZnS thin film had many defects such as stacking faults, pin-holes, so that crytallinity of ZnS thin film is poor, compared to CdS thin film. Additionally, it was known that the hetero-interface between ZnS and CIGS layer made unfavorable band alignment. The unfavorable band alignment hinders electron transport at the heteo-interface. In this study, we focused on growing defect-free ZnS thin film and for favorable band alignment of ZnS/CIGS, bandgap of ZnS and CIGS, valece band structure of ZnS/CIGS were modified. Finally, we verified the photovoltaic properties of ZnS/CIGS solar cells.

• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.33-38
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• 2020

Single-phased SnS thin films have been prepared by RF magnetron sputtering at various deposition pressures. The effect of deposition pressure on the structural and optical properties of polycrystalline SnS thin films was studied using X-ray diffraction (XRD), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and ultraviolet-visible-near infrared (UV-Vis-NIR) spectrophotometer. The XRD analysis revealed the orthorhombic structure of the SnS thin films oriented along the (111) plane direction. As the deposition pressure was increased from 5 mTorr to 15 mTorr, the intensity of the peak on the (111) plane increased, and the intensity decreased under the condition of 20 mTorr. The binding energy difference at the Sn 3d_5/2 and S 2p_3/2 core levels was about 324.5 eV, indicating that the SnS thin film was prepared as a pure Sn-S phase. The optical properties of the SnS thin films indicate the presence of direct allowed transitions with corresponding energy band gap in the rang 1.47-1.57 eV.

• Journal of the Korean institute of surface engineering
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• v.51 no.2
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• pp.126-132
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• 2018

SnS thin films with different substrate temperatures ($150 {\sim}300^{\circ}C$) as process parameters were grown on soda-lime glass substrates by RF magnetron sputtering. The effects of substrate temperature on the structural and optical properties of SnS thin films were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy (Raman), field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), and Ultraviolet-visible-near infrared spectrophotometer (UV-Vis-NIR). All of the SnS thin films prepared at various substrate temperatures were polycrystalline orthorhombic structures with (111) planes preferentially oriented. The diffraction intensity of the (111) plane and the crystallite size were improved with increasing substrate temperature. The three major peaks (189, 222, $289cm^{-1}$) identified in Raman were exactly the same as the Raman spectra of monocrystalline SnS. From the XRD and Raman results, it was confirmed that all of the SnS thin films were formed into a single SnS phase without impurity phases such as $SnS_2$ and $Sn_2S_3$. In the optical transmittance spectrum, the critical wavelength of the absorption edge shifted to the long wavelength region as the substrate temperature increased. The optical bandgap was 1.67 eV at the substrate temperature of $150^{\circ}C$, 1.57 eV at $200^{\circ}C$, 1.50 eV at $250^{\circ}C$, and 1.44 eV at $300^{\circ}C$.

• Proceedings of the Korean Vacuum Society Conference
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• 2012.02a
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• pp.389-389
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• 2012

Molybdenum is one of the most important materials used as a back ohmic contact for $Cu(In,Ga)(Se,S)_2$ (CIGS) solar cells because it has good electrical properties as an inert and mechanically durable substrate during the absorber film growth. Sputter deposition is the common deposition process for Mo thin films. Molybdenum thin films were deposited on soda lime glass (SLG) substrates using direct-current planar magnetron sputtering technique. The outdiffusion of Na from the SLG through the Mo film to the CIGS based solar cell, also plays an important role in enhancing the device electrical properties and its performance. The structure, surface morphology and electrical characteristics of Mo thin films are generally dependent on deposition parameters such as DC power, pressure, distance between target and substrate, and deposition temperature. The aim of the present study is to show the resistivity of Mo layers, their crystallinity and morphologies, which are influenced by the substrate temperature. The thickness of Mo films is measured by Tencor-P1 profiler. The crystal structures are analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD: X'Pert MPD PRO / Philips). The resistivity of Mo thin films was measured by Hall effect measurement system (HMS-3000/0.55T). The surface morphology and grain shape of the films were examined by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM: Hitachi S-4300). The chemical composition of the films was obtained by the energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). Finally the optimum substrate temperature as well as deposition conditions for Mo thin films will be developed.

• Current Photovoltaic Research
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• v.3 no.3
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• pp.75-79
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• 2015

Recently, $Cu_2ZnSn(S_xSe_{1-x})_4$ (CZTSSe) has been received a tremendous attraction as light absorber material in thin film solar cells (TFSCs), because of its earth abundance, inexpensive and non-toxic constituents and versatile material characteristics. Kesterite CZTSSe thin films were synthesized by sulfo-selenization of sputtered Cu/Sn/Zn stacked metallic precursors. The sulfo-selenization of Cu/Sn/Zn stacked metallic precursor thin films has been carried out in a graphite box using rapid thermal annealing (RTA) technique. Annealing process was done under sulfur and selenium vapor pressure using Ar gas at $520^{\circ}C$ for 10 min. The effect of tuning Se/(S+Se) precursor composition ratio on the properties of CZTSSe films has been investigated. The XRD, Raman, FE-SEM and XRF results indicate that the properties of sulfo-selenized CZTSSe thin films strongly depends on the Se/(S+Se) composition ratio. In particular, the CZTSSe TFSCs with Se/(S+Se) = 0.37 exhibits the best power conversion efficiency of 4.83% with $V_{oc}$ of 467 mV, $J_{sc}$ of $18.962mA/cm^2$ and FF of 54%. The systematic changes observed with increasing Se/(S+Se) ratio have been discussed in detail.

• Current Applied Physics
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• v.18 no.12
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• pp.1571-1576
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• 2018

Recent study shows that the main reason for limiting CZTS device performance lies in the low open circuit voltage, and crucial factor that could affect the $V_{oc}$ is secondary phases like ZnS existing in absorber layer and its interfaces. In this work, the $Cu_2ZnSnS_4$ thin film solar cells were prepared by sputtering CuSn and CuZn alloy targets. Through tuning the Zn/Sn ratios of the CZTS thin films, the crystal structure, morphology, chemical composition and phase purity of CZTS thin films were characterized by X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with an energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) and Raman spectroscopy. The statistics data show that the CZTS solar cell with a ratio of Zn/Sn = 1.2 have the best power convention efficiency of 5.07%. After HCl etching process, the CZTS thin film solar cell with the highest efficiency 5.41% was obtained, which demonstrated that CZTS film solar cells with high efficiency could be developed by sputtering CuSn and CuZn alloy targets.

• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.27 no.9
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• pp.589-593
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• 2014

AlNO multi-layer thin films on aluminum substrates were prepared by DC reactive magnetron sputtering method. $Al_2O_3$/AlNO(LMVF)/AlNO(HMVF)/Al/substrate of 4 multi-layer has been prepared in an Ar and ($N_2+O_2$) gas mixture, and $Al_2O_3$ of top layer is anti-reflection layer on double AlNO(LMVF)/AlNO(HMVF) layers and Al metal of infrared reflection layer. In this study, the roughness and surface properties of AlNO thin films were estimated by field emission scanning electron microscopy(FE-SEM). The grain size of AlNO thin films increased with increasing sputtering power. The composition of thin films has been systematically investigated using electron probe microanalysis(EPMA). The optical properties with wavelength spectrum were recorded by UV-Vis-NIR spectrophotometry at a range of 200~1,500 nm. The absorptance of AlNO films shows the increasing trend with swelling ($N_2+O_2$) gas mixture in HMVF and LMVF deposition. The excellent optical performance showed above 98% of absorptance in visible wavelength region.