7 research outputs found
Photoelectrochemical investigation on the cadmium sulfide (CdS) thin films prepared using spin coating technique
Photoelectrochemical cell technology is one of the simplest technologies, which converts light energy directly into electricity. The synthesis of cadmium sulfide (CdS) nanocrystals (NCs) was performed by the facile hot injection method. The NCs were characterized by different techniques such as XRD, Raman, UV-Vis, FESEM, and XPS. The XRD pattern confirms the phase pure hexagonal CdS NCs. The band gap of NCs calculated from the UV-Visible spectrum is at 2.40 eV, indicating good absorption in the visible spectrum. XPS analysis confirmed the presence of individual elements in CdS NCs. The CdS thin-films having different thicknesses were prepared on FTO substrates using the spin coating technique. Photoelectrochemical (PEC) investigation of CdS NCs thin-films photoelectrodes was performed by varying its thickness. The increase in the thickness of thin-films increased photocurrent density
Solution-processed Cd-substituted CZTS nanocrystals for sensitized liquid junction solar cells
The Earth-abundant kesterite Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) exhibits outstanding structural, optical, and electronic properties for a wide range of optoelectronic applications. However, the efficiency of CZTS thin-film solar cells is limited due to range of factors, including electronic disorder, secondary phases, and the presence of anti-site defects, which is key factor limiting the Voc. The complete substitution of Zn lattice sites in CZTS nanocrystals (NCs) with Cd atoms offers a promising approach to overcome several of these intrinsic limitations. Herein, we investigate the effects of substitution of Cd2+ into Zn2+ lattice sites in CZTS NCs through a facile solution-based method. The structural, morphological, optoelectronic, and power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of the NCs synthesized have been systematically characterized using various experimental techniques, and the results are corroborated by first-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The successful substitution of Zn by Cd is demonstrated to induce a structural transformation from the kesterite phase to the stannite phase, which results in the bandgap reducing from 1.51 eV (kesterite) to 1.1 eV (stannite), which is closer to the optimum bandgap value for outdoor photovoltaic applications. Furthermore, the PCE of the novel Cd-substituted liquid junction solar cell underwent a four-fold increase, reaching 1.1%. These results highlight the importance of substitutional doping strategies in optimizing existing CZTS-based materials to achieve improved device characteristics
Synthesis and characterization of molybdenum back contact using direct current-magnetron sputtering for thin film solar cells
In present work, we report synthesis of molybdenum (Mo) thin films by direct current (DC)-magnetron sputtering method. The structural, optical, morphological, and electrical properties were investigated as a function of target-to-substrate distance. From the results, it is evident that with increase in target-to-substrate distance the thickness of films decreases while its sheet resistance and electrical resistivity increases, which is confirmed by van der Pauw method. Low angle XRD analysis revealed that with increase in target-to-substrate distance preferred orientation of Mo crystallites changes from (211) to (110) and its size decreases. The field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) analysis revealed a significant change in surface morphology with increase in target-to-substrate distance. UV-Visible spectroscopy analysis showed that Mo films deposited at higher target-to-substrate distance have more reflection than those deposited at lower target-to-substrate. Finally, adhesion test was performed using scotch hatch tape adhesion test which show all Mo films have excellent adhesion over the entire range of target-to-substrate distance studied. The employment of such Mo films as back contact can be useful to improve efficiency of CZTS solar cells
Synthesis and Characterization of Molybdenum Back Contact Using Direct Current-Magnetron Sputtering for Thin Film Solar Cells
In present work, we report synthesis of molybdenum (Mo) thin films by direct current (DC)-magnetron sputtering method. The structural, optical, morphological, and electrical properties were investigated as a function of target-to-substrate distance. From the results, it is evident that with increase in target-to-substrate distance the thickness of films decreases while its sheet resistance and electrical resistivity increases, which is confirmed by van der Pauw method. Low angle XRD analysis revealed that with increase in target-to-substrate distance preferred orientation of Mo crystallites changes from (211) to (110) and its size decreases. The field emission scanning electron microscope (FE-SEM) analysis revealed a significant change in surface morphology with increase in target-to-substrate distance. UV-Visible spectroscopy analysis showed that Mo films deposited at higher target-to-substrate distance have more reflection than those deposited at lower target-to-substrate. Finally, adhesion test was performed using scotch hatch tape adhesion test which show all Mo films have excellent adhesion over the entire range of target-to-substrate distance studied. The employment of such Mo films as back contact can be useful to improve efficiency of CZTS solar cells
Structural, optoelectronic, and photoelectrochemical investigation of CdSe NC's prepared by hot injection method
In this study, we report the synthesis and characterization of CdSe nanocrystals (NC's) by facile Hot injection (HI) method. The formation of CdSe NC's was confirmed by x-ray diffraction (XRD), Raman spectroscopy, and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The optical properties were analyzed by UV-visible and photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy shows an excitonic peak at 600 nm in UV-Vis spectra corresponds to the band gap of ~ 2 eV favorable for optoelectronic device applications. The Photoelectrochemical (PEC) performance of CdSe thin film prepared by spin coating demonstrates a rise of photocurrent density (Jsc = 0.081 µAcm-2) after illumination. The Mott-Schottky (MS) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements were further carried out to understand intrinsic properties namely the type of conductivity, flat band potential, charge carrier density (ND), charge transfer resistance, and recombination lifetime. The n-type conductivity, the charge carrier density of ND = 1.292 x 1016 cm-2, and recombination lifetime of 32.4 µs suggest the ideal behavior of CdSe NC's for device quality photoelectrodes
Solution-processed Cd-substituted CZTS nanocrystals for sensitized liquid junction solar cells
The Earth-abundant kesterite Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) exhibits outstanding structural, optical, and electronic properties for a wide range of optoelectronic applications. However, the efficiency of CZTS thin-film solar cells is limited due to a range of factors, including electronic disorder, secondary phases, and the presence of anti-site defects, which is a key factor limiting the Voc. The complete substitution of Zn lattice sites in CZTS nanocrystals (NCs) with Cd atoms offers a promising approach to overcome several of these intrinsic limitations. Herein, we investigate the effects of substituting Cd2+ into Zn2+ lattice sites in CZTS NCs through a facile solution-based method. The structural, morphological, optoelectronic, and power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) of the NCs synthesized have been systematically characterized using various experimental techniques, and the results are corroborated by first-principles density functional theory (DFT) calculations. The successful substitution of Zn by Cd is demonstrated to induce a structural transformation from the kesterite phase to the stannite phase, which results in the bandgap reduction from 1.51 eV (kesterite) to 1.1 eV (stannite), which is closer to the optimum bandgap value for outdoor photovoltaic applications. Furthermore, the PCE of the novel Cd-substituted liquid junction solar cell underwent a four-fold increase, reaching 1.1%. These results highlight the importance of substitutional doping strategies in optimizing existing CZTS-based materials to achieve improved device characteristics