Thin film solar cell of SnS absorber with cubic crystalline structure

In a solar cell: stainless steel/SnS/CdS/ZnO/ZnO:Al, we report conversion efficiency of 1.28%, open-circuit voltage (V-oc) of 0.470V, and short-circuit current density (J(sc)) of 6.2mAcm(-2), measured on cells of area 1cm(2) under standard conditions. The thin film of SnS absorber of 550nm in thickness used in this cell was deposited from a chemical bath. Average crystalline diameter of the material is 24nm, and its X-ray diffraction pattern fits a cubic unit cell with cube edge of 1.159nm. The optical band gap of the material is 1.74eV and its electrical conductivity is 10(-6-1)cm(-1). The mobility-lifetime product of the film was determined as 2x10(-7)cm(2)V(-1) from photoconductivity measurement. To build the solar cell, a CdS thin film of 50nm in thickness was deposited from a chemical bath on the SnS thin film prepared on the stainless steel substrate. Subsequently, a ZnO film of 180nm and ZnO:Al film of 450nm in thickness were deposited on this CdS defining a solar cell area of 1cm(2). This solar cell is stable under concentrated sunlight of 2-16 suns, attaining V-oc of 0.6V and J(sc) of 35mAcm(-2) under 16 suns. (C) 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim