4.4 Article Proceedings Paper

The activation of thin film CdTe solar cells using alternative chlorine containing compounds

Journal

THIN SOLID FILMS
Volume 582, Issue -, Pages 115-119

Publisher

ELSEVIER SCIENCE SA
DOI: 10.1016/j.tsf.2014.10.059

Keywords

Thin film solar cells; Cadmium telluride; Cadmium chloride; Activation treatment; Alternative compounds

Funding

  1. EPSRC through the Supergen SuperSolar Hub [EP/J017361/1]
  2. EPSRC [EP/N508433/1, EP/J017361/1] Funding Source: UKRI
  3. Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council [EP/J017361/1, EP/N508433/1] Funding Source: researchfish

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The re-crystallisation of thin film cadmium telluride (CdTe) using cadmium chloride (CdCl2) is a vital process for obtaining high efficiency photovoltaic devices. However, the precise micro-structural mechanisms involved are not well understood. In this study, we have used alternative chlorine-containing compounds to determine if these can also assist the re-crystallisation of the CdTe layer and to understand the separate roles of cadmium and chlorine during the activation. The compounds used were: tellurium tetrachloride (TeCl4), cadmium acetate (Cd(CH3CO2)(2)), hydrochloric acid (HCl) and zinc chloride (ZnCl2). TeCl4 was used to assess the role of Cl and the formation of a Te-rich outer layer which may assist the formation of the back contact. (Cd(CH3CO2)(2)) and HCl were used to distinguish between the roles of cadmium and chlorine in the process. Finally, ZnCl2 was employed as an alternative to CdCl2. We report on the efficacy of using these alternative Cl-containing compounds to remove the high density of planar defects present in untreated CdTe. (C) 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

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