ZnO/CdTe/CuSCN, a promising heterostructure to act as inorganic eta-solar cell

The ZnO/CdTe/CuSCN heterostructure was analyzed as a candidate to act as an inorganic eta-solar cell. A ZnO film consisting of single crystal nanocolumns was electrodeposited on a transparent conducting substrate which acts as n-type material. As absorber material we used CdTe, which was deposited on the ZnO columnar film by Metal Organic Chemical Vapor Deposition. In order to complete the eta-solar cell we deposited a CuSCN layer by chemical solution deposition. A conformal and uniform CdTe coverage of the ZnO columns was achieved, producing a very efficient light trapping effect. The effective absorption (similar to 87%) and effective reflectance (similar to 10%) of the complete heterostructure in the 400-800 nm (AM1.5) solar spectrum range are very favorable for the use of this heterostructure in photovoltaic devices. Preliminary current-voltage characterization made on this ZnO/CdTe/CuSCN heterostructure shows rectifying behavior and a photovoltaic effect. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.