Buffer layers and transparent conducting oxides for chalcopyrite Cu(In,Ga)(S,Se)2 based thin film photovoltaics: present status and current developments

2010 ◽  
Vol 18 (6) ◽  
pp. 411-433 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Naghavi ◽  
D. Abou-Ras ◽  
N. Allsop ◽  
N. Barreau ◽  
S. Bücheler ◽  
...  
2012 ◽  
Vol 187 ◽  
pp. 329-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Verhaverbeke ◽  
Roman Gouk ◽  
Kurtis Leschkies ◽  
Robert Visser

In thin film photovoltaic silicon stacks, the sun facing contact needs to be transparent and textured. Typically transparent metal oxides are used for this purpose. When using sputtered ZnO as the transparent conducting contact typically an acid etch is used to texture etch the surface. This texturing enables light trapping in the cell and greatly enhances the photoresponse. Traditionally dilute HCl has been used for this purpose. In this paper we present the work on a novel etchant for this purpose consisting of HNO3 and Acetic Acid. This greatly enhances the texturing and hence the light trapping in the cell.


MRS Bulletin ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 25 (8) ◽  
pp. 45-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. J. Freeman ◽  
K. R. Poeppelmeier ◽  
T. O. Mason ◽  
R. P. H. Chang ◽  
T. J. Marks

Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) have been known and employed technologically for more than 50 years, primarily in the form of doped single-cation oxides such as In2O3 and SnO2. Beginning in the 1990s, however, multi-cation oxide TCOs began to be developed in Japan (see the article by Minami in this issue and the references therein) and at the former Bell Laboratories. Since then, new TCO phases are being reported with increasing frequency as technological interest in this area heightens. At the same time, our fundamental understanding of the chemical and structural origins of transparent conductivity continues to expand and promises a pathway to dramatically improved materials for a host of applications. This article describes a collaborative, multi-investigator bulk an d thin-film research effort at Northwestern University aimed at the synthesis, characterization, and enhanced understanding of multi-cation (compound and solidsolution) TCOs, and provides a brief account of what we are discovering about this important class of materials.


2001 ◽  
Vol 668 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Ginley ◽  
Tim Coutts ◽  
John Perkins ◽  
David Young ◽  
Xiaonan Li ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTTransparent conducting oxides (TCOs) are becoming a more critical element in thin-film photovoltaic devices. In the continued drive to increase efficiency and stability while reducing cost and optimizing performance, the optical, electrical, and materials properties of TCOs gain increasing importance. TCOs can perform a variety of important functions, including contacts, antireflection coatings, and chemical barriers. In this paper, we will review some of the current advances in the field of transparent conductors and, where possible, will relate these advances to thin-film photovoltaic devices. Highlights will be on the rapidly growing collection of new n- and p-type materials; the implications of these materials on PV have not been fully assessed.


2016 ◽  
Vol 301 ◽  
pp. 35-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuel Roeder ◽  
Alexis B. Beleke ◽  
Uwe Guntow ◽  
Johanna Buensow ◽  
Abdelbast Guerfi ◽  
...  

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document