Hydrophilic Cu2ZnSnS4 nanocrystals for printing flexible, low-cost and environmentally friendly solar cells

Tian, Qiwei; Xu, Xiaofeng; Han, Linbo; Tang, Minghua; Zou, Rujia; Chen, Zhigang; Yu, Muhuo; Yang, Jianmao; Hu, Junqing

doi:10.1039/c2ce06552e

Cited by 124 publications

(109 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…By extrapolating the straight region of the (ahm) 2 -hm curve, the intercept of the hm axis is the direct optical band gap. The direct optical band gap of fabricated CZTS thin films is 1.52 eV, which is in agreement with the reported values [15][16][17][18]. The direct optical band gap is close to the optimal value for single junction solar cell.…”

Section: The Optical Properties Of Thin Filmssupporting

confidence: 90%

“…The flexible Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 thin film solar cells have been studied extensively and the conversion efficiency has been reached 20.4 % [12][13][14]. However, for flexible CZTS thin films or solar cells, there are fewer reports until now [15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]. Table 1 summarizes the reported results of flexible CZTS thin films and solar cells.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

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Characterization of Cu2ZnSnS4 thin films on flexible metal foil substrates

Cao

Yang

et al. 2014

J Mater Sci: Mater Electron

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The vacuum-based magnetron sputtering was utilized to the fabrication of Cu 2 ZnSnS 4 (CZTS) thin films on flexible Al, Mo, and stainless steel foil substrates. The structural, compositional, and morphological properties of prepared thin films were investigated. According to the XRD and Raman results, for Al and Mo foil substrates, the structures of thin films are major CZTS and tiny secondary phase of Cu 2 SnS 3 . The preferred orientation of CZTS is along the (112) plane. The XRD peaks and Raman peaks of CZTS on Mo foil substrate are stronger than those on Al foil substrate. The calculated grain sizes are 33.6 and 39.0 nm for the thin films on Al and Mo foil substrates, respectively, indicating the higher crystallinity for Mo foil substrate samples. The compositions of thin films are near the stoichiometry of CZTS and show Cu-poor and Zn-rich properties. The surfaces of thin films are composed of compact grains. When using stainless steel foil as substrate, the fabricated thin films are composed of Cu 2 SnS 3 , FeS, and Zn, revealing the existence of sulfurization of Fe. The reaction between Fe and S inhibits the full sulfurization of Cu-Zn-Sn precursor, resulting in the absence of CZTS in the fabricated thin films. The composition of thin films is far from the stoichiometry of CZTS. In order to get desired properties of CZTS thin films, the inhibition of reaction between Fe and S is needed for stainless steel foil substrate.

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Section: The Optical Properties Of Thin Filmssupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Characterization of Cu2ZnSnS4 thin films on flexible metal foil substrates

Cao

Yang

et al. 2014

J Mater Sci: Mater Electron

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“…Nevertheless for such a buffer layer the optimal composition of the absorber layer seems to be less Znrich (Zn/Sn ∼ 1) [113]. Other architectures were proposed: SLG/Mo/CZTS/a-Si/ITO [114], a superstrate architecture (glass/FTO/CZTS) [115,116], another superstrate (glass/FTO/TiO 2 /In 2 S 3 /CZTS/Mo) [117], a flexible substrate (Al foil/Mo/CZTS/ZnS/i-ZnO/ITO/Al-Ni) [118].…”

Section: Device Propertiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Kësterite thin films for photovoltaics : a review

2012

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In the years to come, electricity production is bound to increase, and Cu2ZnSn(S, Se)4 (CZTS) compounds, due to their suitability to thin-film solar cells, could be a means to fulfill the demand. After explaining the reasons of the sudden interest of the CIGS scientific community for CZTS solar cells, this paper reviews recent papers published on the subject of kësterites-based solar cells. After a description of crystallographic and optoelectronic properties, including CZTS crystalline structure, defect formation and metal composition, this review paper focuses on CZTS synthesis processes and device properties. Synthesis strategies, including one-or two-step processes, deposition temperature, binary formation control via atmosphere control and their effect on device properties are discussed.

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“…These characteristics are suitable to avoid shunting problems in solar cells. Furthermore, large grain size is preferred in the aim to reduce recombination at grain boundaries and involve carrier transport within the grain [37].…”

Section: Morphological Propertiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of drying temperature on the structural and optical characteristics of Cu2SnS3 thin films synthesized by simple spin coating technique

Rabaoui

Dahman

Dekhil

et al. 2015

J Mater Sci: Mater Electron

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Thin films of Cu 2 SnS 3 (CTS) were successfully prepared, by sol-gel spin coating technique on glass substrates. In this work, the effect of drying temperature on structural, morphological and optical characteristics is investigated. The X-ray diffraction patterns of the samples proved the polycrystalline nature and the formation of pure tetragonal Cu 2 SnS 3 structure with (112) preferential orientation. The AFM and SEM images revealed that the CTS films have continuous and dense morphology. The average crystallite sizes calculated using the Debye-Scherrer formula increased from 3 to 6 nm and the direct optical band gap increased from 1.10 to 1.34 eV with increasing drying temperature from 150 to 300°C. We found that by increasing the drying temperature, the sheet resistance decreased from 500 to 320 X. This makes the material as a good candidate for low cost and friendly environment thin film solar cells.

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Hydrophilic Cu2ZnSnS4 nanocrystals for printing flexible, low-cost and environmentally friendly solar cells

Cited by 124 publications

References 25 publications

Characterization of Cu2ZnSnS4 thin films on flexible metal foil substrates

Characterization of Cu2ZnSnS4 thin films on flexible metal foil substrates

Kësterite thin films for photovoltaics : a review

Effect of drying temperature on the structural and optical characteristics of Cu2SnS3 thin films synthesized by simple spin coating technique

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