Annealing Induced Shape Transformation of CZTS Nanorods Based Thin Films

Here we studied the annealing induced shape transformation of 1D Cu₂ZnSnS₄ (CZTS) nanorods from nanospheres and nanocubes by simple sol-gel method without using any toxic chemicals or complicated vacuum based technology. X-ray diffraction pattern and Raman spectra reveal the formation of kesterite structure CZTS thin films. The energy dispersive X-ray analysis results indicate the presence of Cu, Zn, Sn, and S. The elemental distribution of all the CZTS samples was studied using elemental mapping. The Hall effect studies of the CZTS thin film composed of nanorods exhibits the lowest resistivity values which indicates efficient charge transfer for unidirectional structure. The obtained optical band gap energy of CZTS thin film is in the range of 1.46-1.54 eV, which is quite close to the optimum theoretical value required for solar cell applications.