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CdTe Solar Cell from Sputtering Method

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 June 2012

Tara P. Dhakal ,
Lakshmi K. Ganta ,
Dino Ferizovic ,
Surya Rajendran ,
Daniel Vanhart ,
Michael A. Seymour  and
Charles R. Westgate
Tara P. Dhakal
Affiliation:
Center for Autonomous Solar Power, SUNY-Binghamton, Binghamton, NY, USA
Lakshmi K. Ganta
Affiliation:
Center for Autonomous Solar Power, SUNY-Binghamton, Binghamton, NY, USA
Dino Ferizovic
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
Surya Rajendran
Affiliation:
Center for Autonomous Solar Power, SUNY-Binghamton, Binghamton, NY, USA
Daniel Vanhart
Affiliation:
Center for Autonomous Solar Power, SUNY-Binghamton, Binghamton, NY, USA
Michael A. Seymour
Affiliation:
Center for Autonomous Solar Power, SUNY-Binghamton, Binghamton, NY, USA
Charles R. Westgate
Affiliation:
Center for Autonomous Solar Power, SUNY-Binghamton, Binghamton, NY, USA
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Abstract

We report CdTe/CdS solar cell with CdTe layer grown by sputtering method. A controlled etch and anneal process on the sputter-grown CdTe films was performed to increase the average grain size of the film. The process involved dipping the CdTe films in a saturated solution of cadmium chloride (CdCl2) in methanol (2.08 gram in 100 ml) followed by a 30 minute annealing at 400 °C. We performed various experiments on this process by varying the dipping times, drying process and annealing times and analyzed the resultant films using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). We could see a clear increase in grain size from 200 nm to 5 μm after CdCl2 treatment. The process also increased the overall roughness of the sample so that more light is absorbed than reflected. We prepared solar cells using CdTe as p-type layer and CdS as n-type layer. The efficiency of the cell improved from 1.1% to 4.2% after air annealing. The effect of air-annealing is studied by means of quantum efficiency measurement.

Keywords

photovoltaicsputteringthin film
Type
Articles
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 1447: Symposium V – Nanostructured and Advanced Materials for Solar-Cell Manufacturing , 2012 , mrss12-1447-v03-26
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2012

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References

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