ALD Zinc Tin Oxide Buffers for Chalcopyrite Solar Cells: Electrical Barriers and Conduction Band Cliffs

TL;DR

This study explores atomic layer deposition of ZnSnO as a buffer layer in chalcopyrite solar cells, analyzing how tin content influences conduction band offsets and impacts device performance.

Contribution

It demonstrates how varying tin content in ZnSnO buffers affects conduction band alignment and electron transport in chalcopyrite solar cells.

Findings

Low tin buffers create conduction band cliffs reducing voltage.

High tin buffers introduce electron transport barriers, lowering fill factor.

Sn content correlates positively with the buffer's conduction band minimum.

Abstract

Sulfide chalcopyrite, Cu(In,Ga)S2, having wide bandgap (larger than 1.5 eV), favorable optoelectronic properties, and high stability, is a promising top-cell absorber for tandem applications. Adapting device structures optimized for 1.0 - 1.2 eV absorbers to wide bandgap absorbers requires modification of the buffer layer. This work investigates atomic layer deposition of ZnSnO as an alternative buffer layer to conventional CdS. A critical parameter for bufferperformance is the conduction band offsets on both sides of the buffer. To investigate these buffers we electrically characterize solar cells utilizing different compositions of ZnSnO. The Sn/(Sn+Zn) atomic ratio is controlled by the ratio of ZnO to SnO cycles during atomic layer deposition. Solar cells were fabricated utilizing CuInSe2, Cu(In,Ga)Se2, and Cu(In,Ga)S2 absorbers, allowing cross-comparison with a variety of conduction band minimum energies. Buffer variation has two primary effects on cell performance: 1. Low tin buffers decrease the activation energy of interface recombination, reducing open circuit voltage. These observations indicates a cliff, a decrease of the conduction band minimum from absorber to buffer. 2. High tin buffers reduce the fill factor for all measured cells, and reduce the short circuit current under certain conditions. This observation indicates an electron transport barrier, conduction band offsets which limit the transport of electrons across the buffer, in either direction. We conclude that tin content correlates positively with the conduction band minimum of these buffers. Comparing different absorbers, cliffs occurs at lower Sn contents and the effects of barriers are more dramatic for absorbers with lower conduction band minima.