SOLUTION PROCESSABLE THIN FILMS FOR ALL-OXIDE SOLAR CELLS

Abstract

The increasing demand for sustainable energy sources has driven extensive research into solar cells for efficient and environmentally friendly energy conversion. While perovskite-based solar cells have demonstrated promising efficiencies, concerns surrounding their poor stability and potential toxicity due to lead content have shifted the focus towards the development of low-cost, stable, and safe photovoltaic alternatives. In this context, Cu2O (copper(I) oxide) has emerged as a highly promising photoactive material for solution-processable alloxide solar cells, offering significant advantages such as low-cost fabrication, environmental friendliness, abundance of constituent elements, and compatibility with low-temperature solution processing techniques. Cu2O is a p-type semiconductor with a direct bandgap of approximately 2.0 eV, enabling strong light absorption in the visible range and positioning it as an attractive candidate for photovoltaic applications. Furthermore, Cu2O exhibits unique properties including high carrier mobility, efficient charge carrier separation, and low recombination rates, which collectively contribute to the overall performance and efficiency of the solar cell device. This research study primarily focuses on investigating the fabrication methods and parameters used for depositing Cu2O (copper(I) oxide) thin films. The techniques employed in this study include electrodeposition and Successive Ionic Layer Adsorption and Reaction (SILAR) method. The objective is to explore the influence of these deposition methods and parameters on the properties of the Cu2O thin films.