Improving the performance of Cu₂SrSnS₄ solar cells with inorganic hole transport layers

Skinny movie photo voltaic cells corresponding to CdTe and CIGSe have gained important consideration attributable to their low manufacturing price and wonderful energy conversion efficiencies (PCE). Nonetheless, toxicity and shortage of constituent parts limit their widespread utilization.

Not too long ago, Cu₂SrSnS₄ semiconductor has emerged as a possible substitute attributable to its exceptional absorber traits, together with non-toxicity, Earth abundance, tunable bandgap, and so forth. However nonetheless, it is within the rising stage with a low PCE of 0.6%, revealing that it requires exceptional enhancement to compete with conventional photo voltaic cells.

The massive open circuit voltage (V_OC) loss constricts its efficiency, which primarily originates from improper band alignment with the transport layers. Discovering the perfect system configuration is the very best resolution to boost its PCE.

Not too long ago, SCAPS-1D simulation software program has gained consideration attributable to its reliability and the benefit of finding out photo voltaic cell properties in much less time with out consuming materials. In our work published within the Journal of Physics and Chemistry of Solidswe proposed a number of system configurations and comprehensively studied the efficiency of Cu₂SrSnS₄ photo voltaic cells utilizing SCAPS-1D.

We designed six Cu₂SrSnS₄ photo voltaic cells in superstate configuration based mostly on chalcogenide and oxide-based gap transport layers (HTLs), specifically Sb₂S₃MoS₂Cu₃BiS₃Baby, fairly₂and with₂O, with ZnMgO as electron transport layer (ETL). As well as, we additionally designed photo voltaic cells with out HTL to grasp the importance of HTL in efficiency enhancement.

Their efficiency was broadly analyzed as a perform of every layer’s important parameters, corresponding to thickness, service density, defect density, and interface properties. The ultimate outcomes of those optimizations have been exceptional. Addition of HTL elevated the PCE, and in comparison with the chalcogenide HTLs, the oxide HTL-based photo voltaic cells delivered increased efficiency with the champion PCE of 18.48% for Cu₂O HTL.

We additional carried out comparative analyses between the various HTL-based photo voltaic cells to find the rationale for the supremacy of Cu₂O HTL over the others. The examine centered on vitality band diagrams, electrical subject, technology, recombination charges, Nyquist plots, and electron distribution of every photo voltaic cell extracted from SCAPS-1D.

We recognized that Cu₂O photo voltaic cells had excellent band alignment on the interface of absorber and HTL with gap and electron boundaries of -0.04 eV and 0.46 eV. Moreover, it displayed the next electric field on the damaging aspect, a big recombination resistance of 9.4×10⁵O.cm² and a low V_OC deficit in comparison with others.

In conclusion, our work delivers promising tips for the photovoltaic neighborhood to grasp the significance of HTL in bettering the effectivity of photo voltaic cells. So, we consider that the fabrication of Cu₂SrSnS₄ photo voltaic cells with the champion system construction FTO/ZnMgO/Cu₂SrSnS₄/Cu₂O/Ni would improve the PCE of Cu₂SrSnS₄ solar cells sooner or later.

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Dr. Latha Marasamy is a Analysis Professor on the School of Chemistry at UAQ, the place she leads a dynamic crew of worldwide college students and researchers. Her mission is to advance renewable vitality, notably within the improvement of second and third-generation photo voltaic cells, which embrace CdTe, CIGS, rising chalcogenide perovskites, lead-free perovskites, quaternary chalcogenides of I2-II-IV-VI4, and hybrid photo voltaic cells. She is working with a spread of supplies corresponding to CdTe, CIGSe, CdS, MOFs, graphitic carbon nitride, chalcogenide perovskites (ABX₃the place A = Ba, Sr, Ca; B = Zr, Hf; X = S, Se), quaternary chalcogenides (I2-II-IV-VI4, the place I = Cu, Ag; II = Ba, Sr, Co, Mn, Fe, Mg; IV = Sn, Ti; VI = S, Se), steel oxides, MXenes, ferrites, plasmonic steel nitrides, and borides for these purposes. Moreover, Dr. Marasamy is investigating the properties of novel supplies and their affect on photo voltaic cell efficiency by DFT and SCAPS-1D simulations.