Crystal Growth Promotion and Defect Passivation by Hydrothermal and Selenized Deposition for Substrate-Structured...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Renewable Energy
• Solid-State Physics

Background:

• Antimony sulfide-selenide (Sb₂(S,Se)₃) is a promising light-harvesting material for thin-film photovoltaics (PV).
• It offers excellent light absorption, abundant elemental resources, and good stability.
• Expanding its application in flexible or tandem solar cells is of significant interest.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate a hydrothermal method with postselenization for Sb₂(S,Se)₃ film deposition on a substrate structure.
• To investigate the mechanism of postselenization on crystal growth and defect passivation.
• To optimize Sb₂(S,Se)₃ solar cells for enhanced performance.

Main Methods:

• Hydrothermal deposition of Sb₂(S,Se)₃ film.
• Postselenization treatment for film optimization.
• Characterization techniques to analyze film properties and defect density.
• Fabrication and testing of Sb₂(S,Se)₃ solar cells with SLG/Mo/Sb₂(S,Se)₃/CdS/ITO/Ag configuration.

Main Results:

• Postselenization improved Sb₂(S,Se)₃ film crystallinity and carrier transport.
• Interface and bulk defect densities in the Sb₂(S,Se)₃ solar cells were significantly reduced.
• Optimized electronic transport and collection, and reduced recombination losses.
• Achieved a power conversion efficiency of 4.05% for the Sb₂(S,Se)₃ solar cells.

Conclusions:

• The hydrothermal method combined with postselenization is effective for developing Sb₂(S,Se)₃ thin-film solar cells.
• Postselenization plays a crucial role in enhancing material quality and device performance.
• This study provides valuable insights for advancing Sb₂(S,Se)₃-based photovoltaic technologies.