Formation of Ga double grading in submicron Cu(In,Ga)Se<sub>2</sub> solar cells by pre-depositing a CuGaSe<sub>2</sub> layer

Kong, Yifan; Li, Jianmin; Ma, Zengyang; Chi, Zheng; Xiao, Xudong

doi:10.1039/d0ta02710c

Cited by 10 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…No metallic grids were used for modules. Note that the details mentioned above can be found in our previous works. ,− …”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Double-Sided Heat-Exchange CBD System for Homogeneous Zn(O,S) Thin Films in Highly Efficient CIGS Solar Devices

Gong

Zhu³

et al. 2020

ACS Appl. Energy Mater.

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Zn(O,S) thin film as one of the most promising alternative buffer layers in Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 solar devices has drawn considerable attention and been intensively studied in recent years. However, the reliability of the fabrication process still impeded its industrial application. In this work, a self-designed double-sided heat-exchange chemical bath deposition (CBD) system was introduced to deposit large-area homogeneous Zn(O,S) thin films. Compared with the traditional CBD setup, the self-designed system possesses several advantages including fast heat-up, homogeneous heating, wide adaptability, and cost-saving. Intriguingly, based on the self-designed system, high-quality Zn(O,S) thin films with less amounts of OH − and O 2− impurities were easily and successfully deposited without changing the recipe. Furthermore, we have also demonstrated the homogeneity of the solar cells made from the same substrate with a large area and adopted this technique for the fabrication of modules both in the laboratory and in our partner company Shinetech Co., Ltd. As a preliminary result, over 16% conversion efficiency for rigid modules (53 cm 2 ) and over 10% for flexible modules (36 cm 2 ) based on the self-designed deposition system were obtained. As a consequence, a deeper understanding may be provided to deposit high-quality and large-scale Zn(O,S) thin films and hopefully also applicable to industrial.

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“…No metallic grids were used for modules. Note that the details mentioned above can be found in our previous works. ,− …”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Double-Sided Heat-Exchange CBD System for Homogeneous Zn(O,S) Thin Films in Highly Efficient CIGS Solar Devices

Gong

Zhu³

et al. 2020

ACS Appl. Energy Mater.

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“…Therefore, the interface recombination at both the front and back interface is more critical and is one of the limiting factors for our device performance. [ 33 ] Also, our CIGS has relatively small grains (<100 nm), and thus more grain boundaries. [ 34 ] The grain boundaries are generally accepted in their role as recombination centers.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Study of Ammonium Sulfide Surface Treatment for Ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ with Different Cu/(Ga + In) Ratios

Buldu

Wild

Brammertz

et al. 2020

Physica Status Solidi (a)

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In ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) film solar cells, the CdS/CIGS interface may become one of the limiting factors for efficiency. The first step toward reducing the impact of this problem could be a surface treatment process to improve the quality of the front interface. The purpose of this study is to have a better understanding of the effect of wet chemical surface treatment, using ammonium sulfide ((NH4)2S), on CIGS thin film layers with different Cu/(Ga + In) (CGI) ratios. Herein, photoluminescence (PL) and time‐resolved PL (TRPL) studies are conducted on bare CIGS, ammonium sulfide–treated CIGS thin films, and samples with CdS. In bare CIGS, CGI ratio–dependent changes in PL are observed on both a low‐energy (defect related transition) and a high‐energy peak (band‐to‐band transition). After the surface treatment, the PL maximum increases by factors ranging from 4 to 11 depending on the CGI ratio, accompanied by a slower decay. Trends with similar improvement as in the PL study are observed in the performance of the solar cells. It is shown that the impact of the surface treatment is beneficial independently of the CGI ratio of the absorber layers. In all cases, the treatment is shown to improve the efficiency.

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“…The submicron CIGS thin films are grown by the coevaporation method on Mo-coated soda-lime glass, as described in our previous reports. − The detailed settings about the control of Cu content in CIGS thin films are also described in the front part of this paper. The thickness of the CIGS absorber is constrained to be around 0.9 μm.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Failure and Recovery Modes of Submicron Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ Solar Cells with High Cu Content

Kong

Huang

Chi

et al. 2020

ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces

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As an emerging route to further lower the production cost, reducing the thickness of Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 (CIGS) absorber has drawn substantial attention and has been intensively studied in recent years. However, thickness-induced change still limits the device performance of thin CIGS solar cells. Herein, by examining a series of submicron CIGS solar cells with varied Cu content through their photovoltaic (PV) performance, the optimal Cu content in these submicron CIGS devices is found to be lower than that of the normal thickness CIGS devices. Electrical and compositional characterizations reveal that reduced thickness makes absorber vulnerable to the shunt paths formed with high Cu content. By intentionally lowering the Cu content in submicron CIGS, shunt resistance (R sh ) of the devices is significantly improved and therefore a high fill factor (FF) is achieved. Moreover, RbF postdeposition treatment (PDT) can passivate the shunt paths in the high Cu content samples to a very good extent, manifesting by the significantly improved FF.

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Formation of Ga double grading in submicron Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ solar cells by pre-depositing a CuGaSe₂ layer

Abstract: By introducing a pre-deposited CuGaSe2 layer, a steep Ga back grading has been formed in a submicron CIGS layer with a high-temperature process for the first time.

Cited by 10 publications

References 35 publications

Double-Sided Heat-Exchange CBD System for Homogeneous Zn(O,S) Thin Films in Highly Efficient CIGS Solar Devices

Double-Sided Heat-Exchange CBD System for Homogeneous Zn(O,S) Thin Films in Highly Efficient CIGS Solar Devices

Study of Ammonium Sulfide Surface Treatment for Ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ with Different Cu/(Ga + In) Ratios

Failure and Recovery Modes of Submicron Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ Solar Cells with High Cu Content

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Formation of Ga double grading in submicron Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells by pre-depositing a CuGaSe2 layer

Abstract: By introducing a pre-deposited CuGaSe2 layer, a steep Ga back grading has been formed in a submicron CIGS layer with a high-temperature process for the first time.

Cited by 10 publications

References 35 publications

Double-Sided Heat-Exchange CBD System for Homogeneous Zn(O,S) Thin Films in Highly Efficient CIGS Solar Devices

Double-Sided Heat-Exchange CBD System for Homogeneous Zn(O,S) Thin Films in Highly Efficient CIGS Solar Devices

Study of Ammonium Sulfide Surface Treatment for Ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se2 with Different Cu/(Ga + In) Ratios

Failure and Recovery Modes of Submicron Cu(In,Ga)Se2 Solar Cells with High Cu Content

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Formation of Ga double grading in submicron Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ solar cells by pre-depositing a CuGaSe₂ layer

Study of Ammonium Sulfide Surface Treatment for Ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ with Different Cu/(Ga + In) Ratios

Failure and Recovery Modes of Submicron Cu(In,Ga)Se₂ Solar Cells with High Cu Content