2019MZODegradationThinSolidFilmsFinal.pdf (1.74 MB)
Degradation of Mg-doped zinc oxide buffer layers in thin film CdTe solar cells
journal contribution
posted on 2019-10-17, 14:14 authored by Francesco Bittau, Shridhar Jagdale, Christos Potamialis, Jake BowersJake Bowers, Michael WallsMichael Walls, Amit H Munshi, Kurt L Barth, Walajabad S SampathCadmium Sulphide is the conventional n-type buffer layer used in thin film Cadmium Telluride solar cells. It is well known that Cadmium Sulphide causes optical losses and sulphur diffuses into the absorber during high temperature activation. Sputter-deposited Mg-doped ZnO (MZO) has been shown to be an attractive buffer layer for Cadmium Telluride solar cells due to its transparency and tuneable band gap. It is also stable to high temperature processing and avoids diffusion of elements into the cadmium telluride absorber during the cadmium chloride activation treatment. However, degradation is observed in solar cells incorporating MZO buffer layers. Analysis of the MZO film surface potential has revealed significant fluctuations in the thin film work function once the layer is exposed to the atmosphere following deposition. These fluctuations are attributed to the high reactivity to water vapour of the MgO contained in the MZO films. This has been analysed using X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy to determine corresponding changes in the surface chemistry. The Zinc Oxide component is relatively stable, but the analysis shows that MgO forms a Mg(OH)2 layer on the MZO surface which forms a secondary barrier at the MZO/CdTe interface and/or at the interface between MZO and the Fluorine-doped SnO2. This affects the Fill Factor and as a consequence it degrades the conversion efficiency.
Funding
EPSRC for funding this research (EP/J017361/1 and EP/N026438/1)
National Science Foundation (NSF)Industry/University Collaborative Research Center (I/UCRC) and PFI:AIR-RA program
U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Small Innovative Projects in Solar (SIPS)
History
School
- Mechanical, Electrical and Manufacturing Engineering
Research Unit
- Centre for Renewable Energy Systems Technology (CREST)
Published in
Thin Solid FilmsVolume
691Publisher
Elsevier BVVersion
- AM (Accepted Manuscript)
Rights holder
© Crown CopyrightPublisher statement
This paper was accepted for publication in the journal Thin Solid Films and the definitive published version is available at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tsf.2019.137556.Acceptance date
2019-09-06Publication date
2019-09-09Copyright date
2019ISSN
0040-6090Publisher version
Language
- en
Depositor
Prof Michael Walls. Deposit date: 16 October 2019Article number
137556Usage metrics
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