The impact of different Ag/(Ag + Cu) ratios on the properties of (Cu1−xAgx)2ZnSnS4 thin films

Yang, Shuai; Wang, Shurong; Liao, Hua; Xu, Xin; Tang, Zhen; Li, Xinyu; Wang, Tingbao; Li, Xiang; Liu, Di

doi:10.1007/s10854-019-01463-1

Cited by 19 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 34 publications

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“…This representation has been chosen to evidence that the incorporation of Ag is not beneficial for kesterite devices despite numerous attempts to optimize the performances of CAZTSe-based solar cells. At first sight, this result is in contradiction with numerous previous studies [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13] in which an optimum is found at low (but not null) ACA ratios. All the literature data concerning Ag alloying for kesterite solar cells have been shown in Figure 6b along with the state-of-the-art PCE for sulfur, selenium, and sulfoselenium Ag-free absorbers.…”

Section: Homogeneous Alloyingcontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…b) Literature review of the maximum PCE for CAZTS(S)(e) as a function of the ACA ratio. [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13] Stars represent the state-of-the-art efficiency for CZTS, CZTSSe, and CZTSe solar cells respectively. [17][18][19] The dashed line is a guide for the eye.…”

Section: Graded Alloyingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[4] Some recent studies have shown an improvement of the kesterite-based solar cell PV properties with the introduction of Ag in the lattice. [5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13] In almost all cases, the CAZTSSe absorbers (containing both S and Se) have been fabricated with solution-based processes and show an optimum ACA ratio between 3% and 20%. In the studies by Yan et al and Yang et al, [8,12] physical vapor deposition (PVD) methods have been used to fabricate pure sulfide CAZTS absorbers, whereas in the study by Gershon et al, [9] a pure selenide CAZTSe absorber synthesized by a chemical method exhibits a small PCE improvement for a 10% ACA ratio.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Homogeneous and Graded Ag Alloying in (Cu_1‐xAg_x)₂ZnSnSe₄ Solar Cells

Grenet

Emieux

Roux

2020

Physica Status Solidi (a)

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Cu 2 ZnSn(S,Se) 4 (CZTSSE)-based solar cell performances are limited by band tailing due to a large amount of Cu Zn antisite defects. Partially replacing the Cu atoms by larger Ag ones can significantly reduce the prevalence of these defects, which are particularly detrimental close to the front interface. Herein, the possibility of synthesizing (Cu 1-x Ag x) 2 ZnSnSe 4 absorbers with various Ag contents by vacuum-based processes is demonstrated. Although the synthesis of high-quality materials is demonstrated, their use in thin film photovoltaic devices does not exhibit performance improvement compared with efficient pure CZTSSE-based solar cells. Moreover, the comparison with literature data reopens the debate of the beneficial effect of homogeneous Ag alloying in kesterite. On the contrary, a new method is proposed to fabricate graded (Cu 1-x Ag x) 2 ZnSnSe 4 absorbers with increased Ag content at the interfaces. The solar cells with graded absorbers exhibit better performances than the reference Ag-free ones. Particularly, improved current collection at the back contact and slight reduction of the front interface recombination are demonstrated.

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Section: Homogeneous Alloyingcontrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Graded Alloyingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Homogeneous and Graded Ag Alloying in (Cu_1‐xAg_x)₂ZnSnSe₄ Solar Cells

Grenet

Emieux

Roux

2020

Physica Status Solidi (a)

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“…This observation can be explained by the substitution of Cu + cation (atomic radius = 0.75 Å ) with larger Ag + (atomic radius = 1.15 Å ) reflecting a global interplanarspacing augmentation. 27 To confirm this result, we calculated the values of the cell parameters a and c of both powders by the following formula: where h, k and l are the indices of Miller and d hkl d hkl is the interplanar spacing determined using the Bragg equation:…”

Section: Xrd Analysismentioning

confidence: 92%

Cation Substitution of Copper by Silver in the Earth-Abundant Compound Cu2ZnSnS4: Comparative Study of Structural, Morphological, and Optical Properties

Bousselmi

Khémiri

Ahmadi

et al. 2021

Journal of Elec Materi

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Quaternary compound Cu 2 ZnSnS 4 (CZTS) is widely recognized as a promising candidate for use as an absorber layer for photovoltaic applications. However, its efficiency is limited by the high density of antisite defects that shorten the performance of CZTS-based solar cells. Cation substitution of copper by other elements has been proposed as a potential solution in order to control and eliminate the cation disorder within the kesterite structure. In this work, Ag 2 ZnSnS 4 (AZTS) and Cu 2 ZnSnS 4 (CZTS) powders were successfully synthesized by solid state reaction. XRD and Raman measurements were performed to study the crystallographic structures and their lattice vibration spectrum. The results confirmed the presence of the pure phase of CZTS and the stannite phase of AZTS with an occurrence of the secondary phase Ag 8 SnS 6. Morphological properties and the composition analysis of synthesized powders were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive x-ray analysis. A significant change is noticed in the band gap energy value established by the diffuse reflectance spectroscopy from 1.44 eV for CZTS to 2.55 eV for AZTS. Lastly, measurements with the hot probe method indicate the p-type conductivity of CZTS and the n-type conductivity for AZTS as predicted by theoretical studies. These results highlight that the substitution of silver for copper in CZTS leads to significant changes in the properties of CZTS.

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“…[67] Figure 10 (I) The phase structure of CZTS vs Li doping level; (II) the formation energy of Li occupied at different Wyckoff sites vs Li doping level (compared to Ag) [67] 3 CZTSSe 一价金属部分替位的实验研究 [19,24,43,[75][76] [50,[69][70][77][78][79][80] 、共蒸发法 [81] 和高温固相法 [69,[82][83] . 溅射法和共蒸发法的制备通常要经历两阶段, 首先使用金属元素(Ag、Cu、Zn、Sn)单质或硫(硒)化物作为金属源制备金属预制层(Ag 层可位于金属预制层和 Mo 衬底之间 [50,70,77,79,84] 、金属预制层中 [70,80] 或顶部 [78] ). 除了溅射法和蒸发法, 还可以用沉积法制备 [77] .…”

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Research Progress of Metal(I) Substitution in Cu₂ZnSn(S,Se)₄ Thin Film Solar Cells

Zhou¹,

Xu²,

Duan³

et al. 2021

Acta Chimica Sinica

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Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 solar cell (CZTSSe), as a new type of inorganic thin-film solar cells, has been widely studied in recent years due to the advantages of earth-abundant and environmental-friendly composition elements, high light absorption coefficient and adjustable band gap. CZTSSe solar cell is thus a highly competitive photovoltaic device with potential applications in flexibility, building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) and so on. So far, 12.6% certified efficiency has been achieved for this kind of solar cells. Open-circuit voltage (VOC) deficit is always the key factor to unsatisfied efficiency of CZTSSe solar cells, and band tailing, mismatch of energy band structure and deep level defects are the main causes to VOC deficit. Typically, Cu-Zn disorder-induced defects widely exist in the bulk absorber, due to similar radius of Cu and Zn elements could lead to relatively low formation energy of CuZn and ZnCu anti-site defects. Metal(I) substitution is an effective way to solve Cu-Zn disorder, which can well reduce VOC deficit via lowering band tailing and improving the device structure, leading to better cell performance. However, very few review papers have focused on the metal(I) substitution work. In this review, we will summarize the research progress of metal(I) substitution in Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 thin film solar cells. Part I introduces the structure and problems of CZTSSe solar cells. Part II shows the origin of metal(I) substitution and theoretical research on substituted materials. Part III focuses on synthetic methods about metal(I) partial substitution devices and influence on crystal growth, band tailing, interface defects and band structure. Part IV briefly introduces metal(I) total substitution devices. Part V anticipates the prospects and bottleneck of metal(I) substitution devices, and give some possible solutions to these current

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The impact of different Ag/(Ag + Cu) ratios on the properties of (Cu1−xAgx)2ZnSnS4 thin films

Cited by 19 publications

References 34 publications

Homogeneous and Graded Ag Alloying in (Cu_1‐xAg_x)₂ZnSnSe₄ Solar Cells

Homogeneous and Graded Ag Alloying in (Cu_1‐xAg_x)₂ZnSnSe₄ Solar Cells

Cation Substitution of Copper by Silver in the Earth-Abundant Compound Cu2ZnSnS4: Comparative Study of Structural, Morphological, and Optical Properties

Research Progress of Metal(I) Substitution in Cu₂ZnSn(S,Se)₄ Thin Film Solar Cells

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The impact of different Ag/(Ag + Cu) ratios on the properties of (Cu1−xAgx)2ZnSnS4 thin films

Cited by 19 publications

References 34 publications

Homogeneous and Graded Ag Alloying in (Cu1‐xAgx)2ZnSnSe4 Solar Cells

Homogeneous and Graded Ag Alloying in (Cu1‐xAgx)2ZnSnSe4 Solar Cells

Cation Substitution of Copper by Silver in the Earth-Abundant Compound Cu2ZnSnS4: Comparative Study of Structural, Morphological, and Optical Properties

Research Progress of Metal(I) Substitution in Cu2ZnSn(S,Se)4 Thin Film Solar Cells

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About

Homogeneous and Graded Ag Alloying in (Cu_1‐xAg_x)₂ZnSnSe₄ Solar Cells

Homogeneous and Graded Ag Alloying in (Cu_1‐xAg_x)₂ZnSnSe₄ Solar Cells

Research Progress of Metal(I) Substitution in Cu₂ZnSn(S,Se)₄ Thin Film Solar Cells