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Lopes TS, de Wild J, Rocha C, Violas A, Cunha JMV, Teixeira JP, Curado MA, Oliveira AJN, Borme J, Birant G, Brammertz G, Fernandes PA, Vermang B, Salomé PMP. On the Importance of Joint Mitigation Strategies for Front, Bulk, and Rear Recombination in Ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 Solar Cells. ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES 2021; 13:27713-27725. [PMID: 34086435 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.1c07943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Several optoelectronic issues, such as poor optical absorption and recombination, limit the power conversion efficiency of ultrathin Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells. To mitigate recombination losses, two combined strategies were implemented: a potassium fluoride (KF) post-deposition treatment (PDT) and a rear interface passivation strategy based on an aluminum oxide (Al2O3) point contact structure. The simultaneous implementation of both strategies is reported for the first time on ultrathin CIGS devices. Electrical measurements and 1D simulations demonstrate that in specific conditions, devices with only KF-PDT may outperform rear interface passivation based devices. By combining KF-PDT and rear interface passivation, an enhancement in an open-circuit voltage of 178 mV is reached over devices that have a rear passivation only, and of 85 mV over devices with only a KF-PDT process. Time-Resolved Photoluminescence measurements showed the beneficial effects of combining KF-PDT and the rear interface passivation at decreasing recombination losses in the studied devices, enhancing charge carrier lifetime. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy measurements indicate the presence of an In and Se-rich layer that we linked to be a KInSe2 layer. Our results suggest that when bulk and front interface recombination values are very high, they dominate, and individual passivation strategies work poorly. Hence, this work shows that for ultrathin devices, passivation mitigation strategies need to be implemented in tandem.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomás S Lopes
- INL - International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Avenida Mestre José Veiga, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
- Imec division IMOMEC (partner in Solliance), Wetenschapspark 1, 3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium
- Institute for Material Research (IMO), Hasselt University (partner in Solliance), Agoralaangebouw H, Diepenbeek 3590, Belgium
- EnergyVille, Thorpark, Poort Genk 8310 & 8320, 3600 Genk, Belgium
| | - Jessica de Wild
- Imec division IMOMEC (partner in Solliance), Wetenschapspark 1, 3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium
- Institute for Material Research (IMO), Hasselt University (partner in Solliance), Agoralaangebouw H, Diepenbeek 3590, Belgium
- EnergyVille, Thorpark, Poort Genk 8310 & 8320, 3600 Genk, Belgium
| | - Célia Rocha
- INL - International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Avenida Mestre José Veiga, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
| | - André Violas
- INL - International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Avenida Mestre José Veiga, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
| | - José M V Cunha
- INL - International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Avenida Mestre José Veiga, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
- i3N, Departamento de Física da Universidade de Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
- Departamento de Física, Universidade de Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - Jennifer P Teixeira
- INL - International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Avenida Mestre José Veiga, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
| | - Marco A Curado
- INL - International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Avenida Mestre José Veiga, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
- Department of Physics, University of Coimbra, CFisUC, R. Larga, P-3004-516 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - António J N Oliveira
- INL - International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Avenida Mestre José Veiga, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
| | - Jérôme Borme
- INL - International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Avenida Mestre José Veiga, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
| | - Gizem Birant
- Imec division IMOMEC (partner in Solliance), Wetenschapspark 1, 3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium
- Institute for Material Research (IMO), Hasselt University (partner in Solliance), Agoralaangebouw H, Diepenbeek 3590, Belgium
- EnergyVille, Thorpark, Poort Genk 8310 & 8320, 3600 Genk, Belgium
| | - Guy Brammertz
- Imec division IMOMEC (partner in Solliance), Wetenschapspark 1, 3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium
- Institute for Material Research (IMO), Hasselt University (partner in Solliance), Agoralaangebouw H, Diepenbeek 3590, Belgium
- EnergyVille, Thorpark, Poort Genk 8310 & 8320, 3600 Genk, Belgium
| | - Paulo A Fernandes
- INL - International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Avenida Mestre José Veiga, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
- CIETI, Departamento de Física, Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto, Instituto Politécnico do Porto, Porto 4200-072, Portugal
| | - Bart Vermang
- Imec division IMOMEC (partner in Solliance), Wetenschapspark 1, 3590 Diepenbeek, Belgium
- Institute for Material Research (IMO), Hasselt University (partner in Solliance), Agoralaangebouw H, Diepenbeek 3590, Belgium
- EnergyVille, Thorpark, Poort Genk 8310 & 8320, 3600 Genk, Belgium
| | - Pedro M P Salomé
- INL - International Iberian Nanotechnology Laboratory, Avenida Mestre José Veiga, 4715-330 Braga, Portugal
- Departamento de Física, Universidade de Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
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Mirhosseini H, Kormath Madam Raghupathy R, Sahoo SK, Wiebeler H, Chugh M, Kühne TD. In silico investigation of Cu(In,Ga)Se 2-based solar cells. Phys Chem Chem Phys 2020; 22:26682-26701. [PMID: 33236749 DOI: 10.1039/d0cp04712k] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Photovoltaics is one of the most promising and fastest-growing renewable energy technologies. Although the price-performance ratio of solar cells has improved significantly over recent years, further systematic investigations are needed to achieve higher performance and lower cost for future solar cells. In conjunction with experiments, computer simulations are powerful tools to investigate the thermodynamics and kinetics of solar cells. Over the last few years, we have developed and employed advanced computational techniques to gain a better understanding of solar cells based on copper indium gallium selenide (Cu(In,Ga)Se2). Furthermore, we have utilized state-of-the-art data-driven science and machine learning for the development of photovoltaic materials. In this Perspective, we review our results along with a survey of the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hossein Mirhosseini
- Dynamics of Condensed Matter and Center for Sustainable Systems Design, Chair of Theoretical Chemistry, University of Paderborn, Warburger Str. 100, 33098 Paderborn, Germany.
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