Effect of Annealing on Optical and Band Gap Alignments of CdTe Thin Films Prepared by Pulsed Laser Deposition

Aluminum antimony (AlSb) is a promising photovoltaic material with a band gap of about 1.62 eV. However, AlSb is highly deliquescent and not stable, which has brought great difficulties to the applications. Based on the above situation, there are two purposes for preparing our Zn-doped AlSb (AlSb:Zn) thin films: One is to make P-type AlSb and the other is to find a way to suppress the deliquescence of AlSb. The AlSb:Zn thin films were prepared on glass substrates at different substrate temperatures by using the pulsed laser deposition (PLD) method. The structural, surface morphological, optical, and electrical properties of AlSb:Zn films were investigated. The crystallization of AlSb:Zn thin films was enhanced and the electrical resistivity decreased as the substrate temperature increased. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images indicated that the grain sizes became bigger as the substrate temperatures increased. The Raman vibration mode AlSb:Zn films were located at ~107 and ~142 cm−1 and the intensity of Raman peaks was stronger at higher substrate temperatures. In the experiment, a reduced band gap (1.4 eV) of the AlSb:Zn thin film was observed compared to the undoped AlSb films, which were more suitable for thin-film solar cells. Zn doping could reduce the deliquescent speed of AlSb thin films. The fabricated heterojunction device showed the good rectification behavior, which indicated the PN junction formation. The obvious photovoltaic effect has been observed in an FTO/ZnS/AlSb:Zn/Au device.

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Energy Band Gap Shift of ZnS-ZnO Thin Films Grown by Pulsed Laser Deposition

Ferroelectrics ◽

10.1080/00150193.2010.482497 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 404 (1) ◽

pp. 186-191 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

J.-K. Chung ◽

J. W. Kim ◽

D. Do ◽

S. S. Kim ◽

T. K. Song ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Films ◽

Pulsed Laser Deposition ◽

Band Gap ◽

Energy Band ◽

Pulsed Laser ◽

Laser Deposition ◽

Zno Thin Films ◽

Energy Band Gap

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Wide Band Gap and p-Type Conductive BaCuSeF Thin Films Fabricated by Pulsed Laser Deposition

Japanese Journal of Applied Physics ◽

10.1143/jjap.51.10nc40 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 51 ◽

pp. 10NC40 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Seiji Yamazoe ◽

Munehiro Yoshikawa ◽

Takahiro Wada

Keyword(s):

Thin Films ◽

Pulsed Laser Deposition ◽

Band Gap ◽

Pulsed Laser ◽

Wide Band ◽

Laser Deposition ◽

Wide Band Gap ◽

P Type

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Modulation of Energy Band Gap of ZnO Thin Films Grown by Pulsed Laser Deposition

MRS Proceedings ◽

10.1557/proc-764-c7.9 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 764 ◽

Author(s):

Sang Yeol Lee ◽

Yuan Li ◽

Jang-Sik Lee ◽

J. K. Lee ◽

M. Nastasi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Films ◽

Pulsed Laser Deposition ◽

Band Gap ◽

Energy Band ◽

Pulsed Laser ◽

Processing Parameters ◽

Laser Deposition ◽

Energy Band Gap ◽

Sapphire Substrates ◽

Optical Energy Band Gap

AbstractZnCdO thin films were deposited on (001) sapphire substrates by pulsed laser deposition. Modulation of the energy band gap of ZnCdO was induced by changing the processing parameters. The optical energy band gap of ZnCdO thin films, measured by photoluminescence and transmittance, changed from 3.289 eV to 3.311 eV due to the variation of annealing temperatures. The change of the optical properties was attributed to the change of the stoichiometry of ZnxCd1-xO as illustrated by Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy.

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CdTe thin films grown by pulsed laser deposition using powder as target: Effect of substrate temperature

Journal of Crystal Growth ◽

10.1016/j.jcrysgro.2013.09.036 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 386 ◽

pp. 27-31 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

F. de Moure-Flores ◽

J.G. Quiñones-Galván ◽

A. Guillén-Cervantes ◽

J.S. Arias-Cerón ◽

A. Hernández-Hernández ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Thin Films ◽

Substrate Temperature ◽

Pulsed Laser Deposition ◽

Pulsed Laser ◽

Laser Deposition ◽

Cdte Thin Films ◽

Target Effect

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Characterization of Li7La3Zr2O12 Thin Films Prepared by Pulsed Laser Deposition

MRS Proceedings ◽

10.1557/opl.2012.1266 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 1471 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Jiajia Tan ◽

Ashutosh Tiwari

Keyword(s):

Thin Films ◽

Pulsed Laser Deposition ◽

Band Gap ◽

Pulsed Laser ◽

Lithium Ion ◽

Deposition Process ◽

Laser Deposition ◽

Lithium Ion Conductivity ◽

Deposited Films

ABSTRACTA pulsed laser deposition system was employed to fabricate thin films of Li7La3Zr2O12 solid electrolyte. The deposition process was carried out at room-temperature, resulting in amorphous films. These as-deposited films had a large optical band gap of 5.13 eV, and exhibited a lithium-ion conductivity of 3.35×10-7 S/cm. The films were then annealed, and the effect of annealing on the optical and electrical properties of the films was examined. After annealing at 1000 °C, the films were found to be cubic with a narrower band gap of 3.64 eV. In addition, these annealed films showed an inferior ionic conductivity than the as-deposited ones.

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Effect ofIn SituThermal Annealing on Structural, Optical, and Electrical Properties of CdS/CdTe Thin Film Solar Cells Fabricated by Pulsed Laser Deposition

Advances in Condensed Matter Physics ◽

10.1155/2016/8068396 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 2016 ◽

pp. 1-8 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Alaa Ayad Al-mebir ◽

Paul Harrison ◽

Ali Kadhim ◽

Guanggen Zeng ◽

Judy Wu

Keyword(s):

Thin Film ◽

Thin Films ◽

Solar Cells ◽

Pulsed Laser Deposition ◽

Pulsed Laser ◽

Laser Deposition ◽

Thin Film Solar Cells ◽

Cdte Thin Film ◽

Cdte Solar Cells ◽

Cdte Thin Films

Anin situthermal annealing process (iTAP) has been introduced before the commonex situcadmium chloride (CdCl2) annealing to improve crystal quality and morphology of the CdTe thin films after pulsed laser deposition of CdS/CdTe heterostructures. A strong correlation between the two annealing processes was observed, leading to a profound effect on the performance of CdS/CdTe thin film solar cells. Atomic force microscopy and Raman spectroscopy show that the iTAP in the optimal processing window produces considerable CdTe grain growth and improves the CdTe crystallinity, which results in significantly improved optoelectronic properties and quantum efficiency of the CdS/CdTe solar cells. A power conversion efficiency of up to 7.0% has been obtained on thin film CdS/CdTe solar cells of absorber thickness as small as 0.75 μm processed with the optimal iTAP at 450°C for 10–20 min. This result illustrates the importance of controlling microstructures of CdTe thin films and iTAP provides a viable approach to achieve such a control.

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