Influence of Ligands on the Formation of Kesterite Thin Films for Solar Cells: A Comparative Study

The preparation of solar-cell-grade Cu2 ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin films from ligand-capped small-grained CZTS particles remains hindered by problems of phase segregation, composition non-uniformity, and in particular carbon-layer formation. Herein, through a systematic comparative study of annealed films of CZTS nanocrystals prepared using conventional oleylamine and those prepared using formamide, these problems are found to be mainly attributable to the influence of the ligands, and mechanisms are proposed. Importantly, the origin of the carbon layer in oleylamine-capped CZTS films is revealed to be the reaction between oleylamine and sulfur. This carbon layer has a very poor electrical conductivity, which can be the reason for the limited performance of such films. Fortunately, these problems can almost all be avoided by replacing oleylamine with formamide to form CZTS films.