Improvement of the cell performance in the ZnS/Cu(In,Ga)Se2 solar cells by the sputter deposition of a bilayer ZnO:Al film

Abstract

ZnS is a candidate to replace CdS as the buffer layer in Cu(In,Ga)Se2 (CIGS) solar cells for Cd-free commercial product. However, the resistance of ZnS is too large, and the photoconductivity is too small. Therefore, the thickness of the ZnS should be as thin as possible. However, a CIGS solar cell with a very thin ZnS buffer layer is vulnerable to the sputtering power of the ZnO:Al window layer deposition because of plasma damage. To improve the efficiency of CIGS solar cells with a chemical-bath-deposited ZnS buffer layer, the effect of the plasma damage by the sputter deposition of the ZnO:Al window layer should be understood. We have found that the efficiency of a CIGS solar cell consistently decreases with an increase in the sputtering power for the ZnO:Al window layer deposition onto the ZnS buffer layer because of plasma damage. To protect the ZnS/CIGS interface, a bilayer ZnO:Al film was developed. It consists of a 50-nm-thick ZnO:Al plasma protection layer deposited at a sputtering power of 50W and a 100-nm-thick ZnO:Al conducting layer deposited at a sputtering power of 200W. The introduction of a 50-nm-thick ZnO:Al layer deposited at 50W prevented plasma damage by sputtering, resulting in a high open-circuit voltage, a large fill factor, and shunt resistance. The ZnS/CIGS solar cell with the bilayer ZnO:Al film yielded a cell efficiency of 14.68%. Therefore, the application of bilayer ZnO:Al film to the window layer is suitable for CIGS solar cells with a ZnS buffer layer. Copyright (c) 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.